


Until The End

by manwithaminivan



Series: Until The End [1]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bodyguard, F/F, Getting to Know Each Other, Kara Danvers isn't Supergirl, Lena is crushing hard, Lex Luthor Being an Asshole, Most characters will either show up or be mentioned, Oblivious Kara Danvers, Plot Twist, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Kara Danvers, but she has powers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-02-18
Packaged: 2021-03-14 19:08:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 26,938
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28925568
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/manwithaminivan/pseuds/manwithaminivan
Summary: Lena knew taking over L-Corp would come with certain risks, but she never thought someone would actually attempt to take her life. Now, she realizes she truly does need a bodyguard, luckily a very attractive blonde is up for the task.(A Bodyguard AU)(Series doesn't exactly need to be read in order but for suspense and drama start with this one)
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Series: Until The End [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2200023
Comments: 127
Kudos: 714





	1. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finished my most recent series and thought to myself: 'I'm in quarantine... Why wait to start my next project?' Is it a bit ambitious, maybe, but I hope y'all will stick with me on this ride. So, without further ado here's Until The End. 
> 
> tw // gun violence/shooting (nothing to specific)

Lena knew taking over L-Corp would come with certain risks. Mainly monetary or reputation-wise. What she didn’t expect was the onslaught of death threats and vandalism of her property. She tapped her foot nervously against the bottom of the helicopter she and Andrea were in, trying to calm her nerves. She wasn’t nervous about flying, no, she’s done it a million times before and will have to do it a million times more in the future. She’s nervous about what’s happening when she lands.

It’s the biggest investor event she’s ever had. And she needs it to go well. L-Corp needs the funding of some big-wigs or the numbers aren’t looking too good. She lets out a shaky breath and a hand reaches over and grabs hers, “You okay?”

She can hear her friends voice clearly in the headsets they are wearing, she gives a small smile, “Just wonderful.”

“It’s gonna go fine, Lena. You’re a master at smooching up to these bigshots, just do what you do best and use some of that Luthor charm.”

“I’m not sure being a Luthor is necessarily going to help me out here.”

“Hey, you are not your family, alright? You have done such good for the world. and I promise you they are going to see that.”

She smiles, “Thank you, Andrea.”

The helicopter lands a few minutes later and right as they step out they’re met with flashes of cameras and tons of eager reports asking her questions on the meeting. It’s sucky, and she could have sworn she told her team to make sure the press didn’t come but she pushes on, ignoring them. She goes into the elevator with Andrea on her arm, smoothing the nonexistent wrinkles of her dress.

Andrea gives her a small smile before they step off, and as Lena would say: the game began.

The whole night was filled with fake smiles and even faker compliments. She told every man she saw that she loved his work. If he had a lady with him she’d always tell her that the dress she had on was lovely, she meant those compliments more than any she paid to the men. Eventually, it was time for her to make a speech, and she walked onto the stage with as much grace as she could going to the mic.

She barely remembers what she said, something about appreciating the support. All she really remembers was stepping away from the microphone and almost immediately being tackled to the ground by a very strong person, then the sound of gunshots and screaming. Her head hit the floor below her and she groaned, trying to get a sense of what was happening.

A weight lifted off of her and grabbed her arm and she allowed herself to be pulled, a few more gunshots sounded behind her and her savior as they walked into a dark closet. The door shut behind them and Lena blinked a few times to get used to the light.

She could see a tall figure in there with her, not really able to make out her features other than the fact that she was blonde and had her down. 

“Who are you?”

The woman shushed her.

“Don’t shush me. Who are you?”

There was no reply and Lena scoffed. The blonde was clearly listening for something, Lena isn’t sure how she seemed to focus, all Lena could hear were screams. 

“We need to get you out of here.”

“What?”

“Whoever is shooting was targetting you. So, we need to get you out of here.”

“There is no we not until I know who are you are.”

She sighed, “Kara. Now, can we go?”

“Fine.”

Kara grabbed Lena’s hand and pushed the door open slowly, keeping Lena behind her as she fell into the crowd of people running outside. Lena felt her heart racing, she isn’t fully surprised this was happening. It’s in moments like these she regrets taking over L-Corp, she never thought it get worse than when those idiots threw a break at her car, yet here she was, someone trying to kill her.

There was another gunshot and Kara pushed Lena around a corner, keeping her there while she ushered people out. Now that they were stopped and in actual light, Lena saw just who was protecting her. Kara wore a nice suit, fitted perfectly, Lena could see toned muscles through the jacket. She watched when Kara pulled out a phone and quickly dialed a number, talking to someone while still helping people.

After a minute on the phone Kara walked back to Lena, “Alright, we’re going to the roof.”

“The roof!? Why don’t we just go out with these people?”

“The shooter is calculated, they haven’t hit a single person, they only want you. They watched us fall in with this crowd but didn’t see me stick you here, so they’ll think we’re out there when really there’s a helicopter for you on the roof.” Kara looks at Lena expectantly, “Do you understand?”

Lena raised a brow, baffled. “Why do you have a helicopter on the roof?”

“My sister owed me a favor.”

She takes Lena’s hand and leads her past the elevator and into the stairwell, Lena takes herself from Kara’s grip. “There’s no way I’m going all the way to the roof in heels.”

“Would you prefer I carry you?”

She sighs, “No, just…” She slips off her heels and hands them to Kara. “That’s better.”

They start up the stairs, Kara staying behind Lena the whole time, head on a swivel. By the time they get to the top Lena is completely out of breath but the woman with her seems fine, putting her hand on Lena’s back and pushing her onto the roof. She watched as a black helicopter landed on the pad a couple of feet away. 

Kara picked up her voice and motioned her towards it, “The driver will take you to a safe location!”

“What about you?”

“My jobs not over yet.” With one last push towards the awaiting vehicle and handing Lena back her shoes, Kara disappeared back down the stairs, and it was only then Lena noticed the lump on the side under her jacket. Kara had a gun.

She sighed and walked into the helicopter where she was given a set of headphones and a small smile from the person upfront. He was tall, wearing a collared shirt that complimented his dark skin. He turned back and flipped some switches, the helicopter went up and Lena watched down below as cop cars pulled up, people piling out.

The ride to the ‘safe location’ was about 40 minutes, the man landed the helicopter with ease and told her to take it easy. She had no other instruction but that. So she got off the helicopter and just watched it fly away, staying on the roof of the building they landed on. She looked around, it was dark out and she saw no other buildings around, the only light coming from the building she was standing on. She tried to go over to the edge and look over it when she was stopped by a hand on her shoulder.

“Ms. Luthor.”

She turned to see a woman with short red hair and a stern demeanor looking at her, “Yes?”

“I’m Agent Alex Danvers, you need to come with me.”

She sighed, “Look this is all some big… mistake! I shouldn’t be here.”

“With all due respect ma’am, you being here is the safest option for you right now.”

“Safest option? All that happened was someone tried to kill me, it happens to people all the time, can I just go and talk to normal cops?”

“Please, Ms. Luthor.”

The woman’s gaze never left her for a second and she found herself relenting, following the Agent into the building. When they entered the glass elevator her draw nearly dropped on the floor at the mere amount of tech surrounding them. Huge screens laid on walls, people walked around with tablets she had yet to see released and tons of people sat at computers. typing away.

She pried her eyes away in time to follow Alex out of the elevator and into some kind of small interview room. The door closed behind them and the agent motioned for Lena to sit. She hesitated a moment before doing so, Alex taking a seat across the table.

“So, Lena Luthor. Is that your real name?”

She chuckled nervously, “Um, not technically. I was born Lena Kieren, I was adopted by the Luthors when I was 4.”

“Hm, okay. Why keep the name? After all that Lex and your mother have done, you’d think you’d want to change it.”

She shifted in her seat, “I didn’t do what they did, no need to go through more work than necessary.”

The Agent clicked her pen a few times and Lena found herself needing her to stop. She didn’t say anything though, simply tapping her own fingers against her leg. “What happened tonight, Lena?”

“I see what you’re doing, you think I did this.”

Alex shrugged, “No one ever said that.”

“You think I’m like my mother and brother, I had no hand in this.” 

“Well, the shooter seemed to have missed his mark a few times. Maybe it was a publicity stunt, maybe a cover for something else?”

She scoffed, standing. “I will not sit here and let you slander my name.”

Alex stood with her, “You can’t leave, Ms. Luthor.”

“Says who? I was brought here without even knowing what this place is, or who the hell you are! This is basically kidnapping.”

“You got in the helicopter under your own volition, no one forced you to.”

She groaned, throwing her hands in the air. She tapped her foot on the floor and ran a hand through her hair, suddenly thinking of the perfect thing. “Kara. Kara! I want to talk to Kara. She’s the only one I trust.”

Alex looked to the pane of glass to their right, Lena figured it was a two-way mirror. “Fine.” She grabbed the file she had off the table and left the room. Lena sat back down and sighed, letting her head fall into her hands.

What felt like forever went by until the door opened, and Lena looked up, relaxing when she saw the familiar sight of the woman who saved her. Kara’s hair was now up in a ponytail and her suit jacket was long gone. Her dress shirt was loose but still tucked in, the two top buttons undone. She tilted her head at Lena, “What’s going on?”

“That Agent Danvers woman is keeping me here against my will. I asked to speak with you.”

Kara laughed, “Agent Danvers can be pretty strict, if you want to leave you can leave, Lena.”

She sighed, “Oh.”

Kara walked over to the small table where Lena stayed seated, “Do you not want to go?”

“Where am I?”

The blonde exhaled heavily, “Uh, not sure I can tell you that.”

“I demand to know.”

She smiled, “I apologize, but your demands don’t really work here.”

Lena rolls her eyes before glaring at Kara, hoping it’ll have some kind of effect. It doesn’t and the blonde just stays there. smiling softly and she can’t help but smile back. The woman from earlier who saved her is practically nowhere to be found. Gone is the stern and commanding voice, replaced with a light airy tone that makes Lena feel like she’s floating. The stoic look from earlier is also gone, a soft smile and relaxed features taking its place. Kara seems more at ease, though Lena can tell she’s still at the ready.

“Why’d you save me, Kara?”

“I was hired to do so.”

She raises a brow, “Hired by who?”

“Uhhh, I think her name was Andrea Rojas? Yeah. A few months back she approached me, offering a pretty decent amount of money to just keep you safe.”

Lean gasps, “Have you been following me around for months?”

Kara’s eyes go comically wide, “Woah! Woah! It sounds horrible when you put it like that! I work in personal security, rich people hire me to make sure other rich people don’t kill them or their friends.”

“And Andrea hired you?”

She nods.

“Of course she did.”

“I’m sorry if this upsets you, Lena. If it would make you more comfortable I can quit.”

She smiles at the sincerity and consideration Kara gives her. She draws circles into her leg while thinking it over. “No, no. Clearly, you’re good at your job, but I’d prefer if you weren’t hiding in the shadows all the time.”

“What do you mean?”

“I want you to become my full-time bodyguard, on my payroll. You’ll stay by my side at all times, protecting me from,-” She sighs. “Those who want to kill me.”

Kara nods, “I mean why not? Where do I sign?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And off to the races we go. Hope you all enjoyed the first chapter! I'll be trying to keep updates frequent but I really can't make any promises. If it gets to long feel free to yell at me on tumblr or something.  
> Comments and Kudos are appreciated, let me know what you think. 
> 
> tumblr: manwithaminivan


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little bit of background.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, stay with me, this is all mainly a little bit of exposition, I gotta build this up. So uh yeah, here's chapter two.

Kara liked her job. It was easy for her. Listen for any threats and act accordingly. Things only got complicated when she got attached. It normally doesn’t happen, she’s able to protect and serve then dip as her contract states, but with this one, she was hired for more time than normal. Andrea Rojas called her number one day, claiming she was recommended to her by Cat Grant. Kara laughed lightly at that, Cat suggesting her when she barely ever got her name right was funny to her.

They had a light conversation on the phone before agreeing to meet up at Noonan's. It was an unusual request, instead of being by her clients' side 24/7 she was to follow her around without being noticed. She thought it was a joke at first, but quickly realized it was a serious request. Apparently, the person she’s in charge of protecting was not a fan of bodyguards or any kind of private security service.

She was handed a small file and Kara felt like she was in a spy movie. She opened it up to see a few schedules and a picture of Lena Luthor. She sighed silently, it was ironic, she’d be protecting the person who’s brother is/was so desperate to exterminate her cousin and those like him. Though a job is a job and she agreed, not for lack of very generous pay.

It was easy at first, watching Lena from afar, acting like she had a job at L-Corp, making sure she got to and from work safely. But then she saw Lena crying at her desk after a hard day and she felt bad. So the next day she bought Lena some breakfast and snuck it on her desk when no one was looking. It was small things at first, like a muffin, then it was coffee, sometimes a fruit salad. And Lena ate it every time so she doesn’t see an issue.

Then everything kind of shifted, she supposes that’s what happens when someone is hired to kill the person you’re supposed to protect. She saved Lena’s life, sent her to the DEO, had a little mini-interview and now she’s by Luthor's side all day every day. Kara finds it amusing, her sister, not so much. There was a huge argument, Alex was most definitely not happy about Kara working for Lena.

Still, it paid more than she’s had in a while and she’s not one to turn down that. And Lena hadn’t done anything to wrong her yet, and unlike her sister, she judges people based on their own actions, not their families.

And that’s what got her to today. Sitting in the back of an SUV with Lena across from her, writing some email on her phone. She watched her curiously, Lena never seemed to set down her phone or computer, whatever was available at the time. She practically worked herself to the brink every day then slept it off and repeated the cycle in the morning. Kara worried, it was her nature, so she did what she had done when Lena didn’t know she existed. She secretly ordered food, made sure she took breaks, it was the nice thing to do. She’s a private security guard which means keeping your client alive by any means possible, and right now the biggest threat to Lena’s health is Lena

* * *

She groans and sets her phone down. Maxwell Lord has been driving her up the wall for the past week, completely pestering her with invitations to his new tech unveiling. Apparently, it’d be the: ‘highlight of her ever dull life’. She sets her head in her hands and rubs the bridge of her nose, utterly peeved off.

She feels someone staring at her and looks up seeing Kara, eyebrows slightly creased with concern. They’re in the car heading to L-Corp and neither of them have really spoken to each other the whole ride, in all honesty, Lena got wrapped up in her own world.

“Are you alright?”

She sighs, “No.”

Kara smiles softly at the bluntness, “Anything I can do to make you feel better?”

“That’s a very vague offer, but unless you find a way to have L-Corp run itself I don’t think there’s much you can do.”

“I apologize, I’ve never been business smart.”

Lena raised a brow, “But you run a business.”

“Not alone. I’ve got a team that handles the money and the hiring and all that. I’m just the muscle.”

Lena nods, she certainly is muscle. 6’2 chiseled features like she was sculpted by Michelangelo himself. Kara is a blonde wonder woman, she's got a cut jaw, broad shoulders, gorgeous hair. All around she’s just perfect, both physically and personality-wise. 

The car comes to a stop and Lena sighs, “Another day, another meeting. Let’s get to it shall we?”

Kara leads her out and they walk into the building, Jess falls in with them as they go into Lena’s office. Her assistant looks at Kara a moment before going closer to Lena’s desk, tablet firm in her hands. “Jess, good morning.”

“Good morning, Ms. Luthor. You’ve got quite the day ahead of you.”

She laughs, “When do I not?”

It was meeting after meeting. She barely had time to use the restroom in between them. First, it was the PR team, then investors, then the science team and repeat the onslaught with different people. It was horrible and tiring and now it was 7 pm and she was still at the office, starving but not about to leave until she got the end of quarter financials done.

Her head hurt as she stared at the screen, the letters coming off the page and swirling together in the air. She was tired and hadn't slept well in days. She continued to type, not really focused anymore. A loud knock jolted her and she reached under the table to grab the taser she kept there but relaxed when she saw who it was.

“Kara, gosh, you scared me.”

“Forget I was here?”

She frowned, “Oh, I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to keep you.”

The woman smiled and shook her head, walking over to Lena’s desk where she set down a bag of takeout. “It’s my job, no need to apologize.”

Lena looked at the bag a moment, “When did you leave to go get Big Belly Burger? That’s like all the way on the other side of town.”

She shrugged, opening the bag and giving Lena a bag of food. “Um, traffic was light.”

She watched as Kara pulled up a chair and sat across from her desk, unwrapping her own burger and eating it. Lena hesitated before following suit and eating the burger and fries Kara got her. They made small talk over their food, mainly focusing on Lena’s current work and how her week was looking. 

Every time Kara smiled or laughed Lena felt a sense of pride that she was the one that caused that. Eventually, Lena checked the time, “It's late. I don’t want to keep you any longer.”

“Let me make sure you get home alright.”

Kara stood with Lena, picking up the trash behind them. 

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah! No need to call your driver when it’s this late, I can drive you in my car.”

Lena hesitated. This felt unprofessional, but still, Kara was being so nice. And how could she say no to that smile?

“Alright. If you’re sure.”

They walked out to the parking garage and Kara pulled out a key. She unlocked a sleek black truck from afar, holding the door open for Lena. She laughed lightly as she got in, buckling up. Kara got in on the other side and started the car, driving out of the garage.

She sighed and took in the interior of her bodyguard's car. It was nice, clean luckily. In the middle of the dash was a small camera, Lena figured it was a dashcam. Hanging from the rearview mirror was a small picture of a very young-looking Kara in a military uniform next to a familiar agent.

“Is that you and Agent Danvers?”

Kara looks to the picture, “Yeah. She’s my sister.”

“What’s with the uniform?”

“I was in the marines, six years.”

Lena whistled sharply, “Impressive. Guess that’s what makes you so qualified.”

Kara laughed, “I like to think my charming personality is what makes me so wanted in the private security field but hey, I guess it also helps that I have a medal of honor.”

Lena let the information sink in. She knew Kara had the experience but she didn’t think she was a Marine. Nevertheless, she had a medal of honor. She sighs, “Why’d you leave?”

“Not sure if you know this, Lena, but the military sucks.”

She chuckles, looking over at Kara. “Then why’d you join?”

“College is expensive and I have a family name to live up to."

“This explains why you’re so cool.”

Kara looks over at her, raising an eyebrow. “I’m cool?”

“Maybe I’m biased because you saved my life but, you’re just so calm all the time, so collected.”

The blonde shakes her head and laughs, “I am the complete opposite of those things when I’m not on the job, but it’s good to know I achieve what I need to achieve when I’m working.”

Kara pulls to a stop and Lena looks out the window, seeing her penthouse entrance. She huffs a moment, sad to be leaving, she liked the company. She looks over to see Kara staring at her. “This is your stop.”

She nods, “Thank you for the ride.”

“It’s my job to make sure you stay alive, if driving you home at 8 pm is a part of that, then so be it.”

They both share a smile before Lena gets out. Her phone buzzes as she watches Kara drive off, she picks it up as she walks inside.

“Lena Luthor.”

“Lena! It’s Max. I need to know if you’re going to be at my party.”

She rolls her eyes, unlocking her door and taking off her shoes. “I think I’d rather die than spend time with you.”

“Ah come on. Everyone’s coming!”

“Everyone who?”

She hears him flipping through some papers, “Andrea, Jack, and Sam! Come on, Lena, get the old gang back together.”

“The old gang, really? Max, you stole my work and tried to pass it off as your own. It’s not exactly something I just forgive you for.”

He groans exaggeratedly, “Lena, the past is the past! It’s not like I got away with it. Just come, you can even bring that new blonde toy of yours.”

“Blonde toy?”

“The one that’s been following you around! It’s all over social media and the tabloids: ‘ _Who is Lena Luthor’s shadow’ ‘Dashing woman seen with Lena Luthor._ ’ Oh! And my personal favorite: _‘Lena Luthor spotted with every woman and man’s wet dream.’_ ”

She sighs, “She’s my security guard, you imbecile.”

“Well, I wouldn’t blame you if she was something more.” She can almost hear his grin through the phone. “She’s incredibly attractive.”

“If I agree to come will you shut up?”

“Of course.”

She taps her fingers along the bar, “Fine. I’ll be there.”

“Wonderful! It’s Friday, starts at 6 ends whenever I feel like it. Oh, and it’s formal so make sure you and your little date are matching, alright? No jarring colors.”

“She’s not my da-” She hears the phone click before she can finish and she sets her phone down, pouring herself a drink. She takes a swig and enjoys the feeling of the whiskey burning down her throat. She needs to sleep, but maybe just one more drink will do. Heaven knows this week is going to be hell for her, so what’s the problem with just letting loose on a Tuesday night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it weird to say I've hit writers block even though it's only chapter two? Oh well, I'm gonna say it anyway.
> 
> As always kudos and comments are appreciated, let me know what's working and what's not.
> 
> tumblr: manwithaminivan


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things go awry at Max's unveiling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo, chapter three. Gonna be honest didn't proofread this one as much as I should so if you see any grammar or spelling mistakes bare with me, I'll fix them as soon as I get the chance. I just wanted to put this one out there. So, here it is enjoy.

She took a breath and stared at herself in the mirror. This would be her first time at a real outing since the shooting. She was nervous, who wouldn’t be, though she took small comfort in knowing that Kara would be there. After the call with Max, she looked into these rumors and articles being spread and written, and Max wasn’t exaggerating. Most of them were some semblance of ‘Lena Luthor's new girlfriend?’ only about three had logical theories on who the woman was.

Though she can’t really blame them. Who hires just one person to be their security detail? But she trusted Kara, and so far no one else has tried to take her life so she counts it as a win. She sighs when she hears her phone buzz, picking it up and seeing a message from her driver stating he was outside with a Ms. Kara Danvers.

She pressed down her dress before grabbing her phone and bag and walking downstairs. When she exited the door Kara stood outside the car and Lena nearly stopped dead in her tracks. Kara’s day to day work outfit was a white button-up shirt under a black suit jacket and black pants. It was nothing out of the ordinary to see in an office. But now, Kara seemed to pull out the stops.

She wore a navy suit that matched Lena’s off the shoulder dress. In her suit pocket stuck out a white handkerchief, folded into a perfect little triangle. Her hair was pulled back in a bun and her hand adorned a single black band on her ring finger that Lena hadn’t ever seen before. She looked for what she knew as already there, the gun Kara had on her at all times. Though she was pulled from her maybe not so subtle search by Kara opening the car door for her.

“Ah, thank you.”

“My pleasure.”

Kara stepped in after Lena did, closing the door behind them and after a few seconds the car started up. Lena stared at the seat in front of her, fidgeting slightly with the hem of her dress. She heard Kara chuckle and looked over. “What’s funny?”

“Nothing. I just rarely see you nervous is all.”

She nodded, “Yes, well, the last time I went to an event it did not end very well, so.”

Kara’s face fell slightly, “You can’t blame yourself, Lena.”

“Who said I’m blaming myself?”

“I can tell you are… What happened wasn’t your fault, okay? No one got hurt and I’ll be by your side all night, so no need to worry.”

She smiled, “Thanks, Kara.”

“Anytime.”

“So, um. Where’d you get the suit from?”

Kara looked down at what she was wearing a moment as if she forgot she had it on. “Oh, I have a friend who’s a reporter and she’s interviewed a lot of designers, guess she called in a favor or something.”

Lena nodded, “It fits you perfectly.”

“I’d sure hope so. Spent hours doing measurements with a guy who had some fancy french name. By the end of it, I felt like my legs were going to give out.”

She laughs, thinking over what Kara said. “So you had a custom suit made for this little event?”

The blonde shrugged, messing with the cuffs of her suit jacket. “Can’t be looking bad in front of my boss’s friend can I?”

“I don’t think you could ever look bad.”

Kara cocked her head slightly, “You flatter me.”

The car stopped and Kara opened up the door for her, immediately cameras began flashing and Kara discreetly slipped sunglasses on herself as she guided Lena up the walkway.

“Ms. Luthor! Ms. Luthor! I’m Joseph Spirit with the-” 

She heard the man’s voice and kept walking forwards but was halted when a hand caught her arm, she jolted slightly but the pressure on her arm was quickly gone. She looked to see Kara holding the man who grabbed her arm. She grabbed the man’s camera and notepad and shoved him back behind the line. He yelled some obscenities but Lena didn’t pay attention to it, simply watching as Kara stuck the notepad in her pocket and did something on his camera before handing it back.

A firm hand fell onto Lena’s lower back and lightly urged her forward. Lena gave in and began walking again, leaving the yelling voices and camera flashes outside. As soon as they were in Lena turned to Kara.

“What’d you do?”

“Deleted some pictures and took his notepad. He might be left with a bruise on his wrist, but nothing bad.”

She nodded, “Okay…”

A hand fell onto her shoulder and she turned to see Max’s arrogant smile. She smiled politely, “Max.”

“Lena! And Lena’s new boy toy…”

She scoffed, “Don’t be so crude.”

“It’s been too long, dear.”

She could feel Kara’s heated stare on the two even with the space between them. She sighed and gripped her purse a bit harder, “When’s this unveiling supposed to happen?”

He turned and began to walk from them, Lena followed, looking around as they walked. It was a beautiful venue, lovely arches were located on the ceiling, gold accents decorating the pillars that were about. In the middle of the room, pushed against a wall was a big stage, a podium with a sheet covered over it stood prominently on the stage, and around them sat tables with flowers on them.

“Lena? Have you heard a thing I’ve said?”

She snapped back to reality, “No, I did what I do when you come on the news, I tuned you out.”

He laughs, “Always the ray of sunshine, aren't you? Well, to answer your question again, the unveiling is happening in about an hour. After that there will be a few questions then most people will leave. You however will stay.”

“Oh, will I?”

“Yes! It’s the after-party.”

She sighs, “Fine.”

“Great, until then, drink, be merry. Andrea and Sam are already here. They’re near the bar, of course. But as for Jack, I think he’s only going to show up for the after bit.”

She nods and watches him leave, she turns to Kara after a moment. “Care for a drink?”

“I’m on the job, Lena. I think I should stay sober.”

She bites the inside of her cheek at her mistake, “Right.” She walks over to the bar, avoiding as much interaction with other people as she could before she ended up in front of her friends.

Andrea and Sam smiled at her, each hugging her before turning their attention to Kara. Sam hid a laugh behind a drink of champagne, “So, this is your new… bodyguard?”

Kara held out a hand, but Sam didn’t take it, simply taking another sip. Kara dropped her hand back down. “Nice to meet you.”

“Only one person for security? Seems a bit… relaxed.”

Lena scoffs, “Always so suspicious, Sam, come on. Play nice.”

Andrea smiles lightly at Kara, “It’s nice to see you again.”

“Same to you.”

Sam sighs before setting her empty glass on the counter, “I’m Samantha Arias. Call me Sam.” She reaches out her hand as Kara did before, only this time Kara doesn’t do the same.

Lena laughs at the slightly annoyed look that crosses Sam’s face. “She’s only playing your game, Sam.”

“Yes, well, I suppose you’re right.”

For the next hour, they chat about recent endeavors and what they’ve all been up to. Sam tells her that Ruby is starting high school and that she can't wait to see her ‘Aunt Lena’ again. She smiles at that, she’d always been a fan of her friend's daughter. Ruby was bright and kind, and Lena had enjoyed spending time with her. Though through the past few months she’s been preoccupied, unable to spend time with the kid as she used to. She makes a small mental note to clear a day.

Andrea talks about her days at CatCo, how things are going there. Lena feels a tinge of pain at how much her friend seems to actually enjoy her job, and a bit of sadness as she also misses Andrea at L-Corp. Eventually, there’s a loud voice over some speakers and everyone turns to the stage.

She looks back to see Kara but finds no one behind her. She looks around for a moment before spotting her next to a shorter brunette who has a press badge on. The woman is eyeing Kara up, messing with parts of her suit, and smiling. Lena watches the two for a moment before, a weird feeling settling in her stomach before turning back to the stage where Max now stands.

TV screens flash with imagery of this new product, but there’s nothing too specific. She listens as Max describes his product as revolutionary and the next step in national security. After a few more big image flashes and some powerful words, he takes off the sheet, and the TV screens land on what looks like a small scanner.

“This little device can detect alien DNA, all the person has to do is stick their thumb on the pad.” The whole room is eyes on Max as he picks up the device and sticks his thumb on it, the machine flickers white lights for a moment before they turn green. “That’s what a negative test looks like. If we had an alien here and had them do the test then the lights would flash red.”

Lena rolls her eyes at how basic it is.

“Humans have a right to know who or what is among them. Lord Technologies plans to implement these in every store, in every town all across America.”

She feels sick. This device would just push aliens back into hiding on Earth, wouldn’t it? She’s vaguely reminded of her brother at this moment, and how he would react. He’d praise Max for even coming up with the idea, he’s probably living it up in his jail cell right now hearing this.

There’s scattered chatter as Max steps off the stage and to the line of people she can see with press badges. She turns back to the bar only to see Kara back to where she was before, she nearly runs into her. 

“Oh, sorry.”

She shakes her head, “My fault, I thought you were still over there.”

Kara’s face cringes slightly, “Ah, I didn’t think you’d see me sneak away.”

“It’s okay. Um,” She looks over to the press line, seeing the shorter girl from earlier. “Who was that you were talking to earlier?”

“Oh, her name’s Nia. She’s the one who got me the suit hookup. She just wanted to see how it looked, sorry if I scared you.”

She shakes her head, trying to push down the… jealousy she’s feeling. “No worries, you came back and that’s what matters.”

Kara smiles at her. 

“So what did you think of Max’s project?”

That smile went away as quickly as it appeared. “Oh, um. I’m not a science person.”

“It’s not really a science thing, I’d say it’s more human rights. Is it moral to out aliens like that? Don’t they have the right to live like humans?”

Kara nods, sighing. “I’ll never understand why people hate aliens so much, most are just trying to live a better life here…”

“Exactly.” She huffs and rubs her own arm lightly, “Max has always been morally grey, I’m surprised it took him this long to finally come up with something like this.”

“You two don’t get along?”

She nods, “He stole my tech plans, made them the complete opposite of what I wanted them to do. I also have my suspicions he helped my brother with some things, though I could never prove it. I’m surprised you never heard of our falling out, it was pretty big.”

“How many years ago was it?”

“About the same time, Lex lost it, maybe 3 years ago?”

“Ah, I was just getting out of the military, the only thing I heard about was Lex. I spent most of my time then sleeping and catching up on TV shows I missed.”

Lena laughs, “You’ll have to tell me more about your time in the Marines sometime.”

Kara shrugs, but Lena can see the slight tense of her shoulders. “Maybe.”

* * *

People shuffled out of the venue around 8 pm, or more like Max kicked them out. Eventually all those left were Lena, Kara, Sam, and Andrea. They all gathered near the bar again, chatting away, Kara stayed off to the side, seeming both alert and unfocused at the same time. Lena feels strong arms pick her up and she gasps, seeing Kara practically stand to attention at it, but she recognizes the person and laughs.

“Jack, if you don’t put me down right now I will kick you where the sun does not shine.”

He laughs and sets her down, spinning her around so he faces her. “Ah, Lena, so great to see you, darling.”

They hug and Lena sighs, falling into her old friend's warm embrace. 

“Always one to show up late. Couldn’t be on time for once in your life?” Andrea says from the side and Jack playfully glares at her.

Lena and Jack have been friends since they were around 14, having to grow up with parents who were only there half the time, they learned to count on each other. The two of them went to college together but when they graduated split, Jack moved to his hometown in London to pursue his tech Lena moved to National City to hopefully pursue hers, though things went slightly askew for her. 

They kept in touch, however, and whenever Jack was in town she was able to introduce him to her newer friends. They all connected and it was nice to have an actual friend group for once in her life, so Lena keeps their calls regular.

“You know, Andrea, snarkiness is not a good look on you.”

She scoffs and Sam laughs at her. The mood is quickly soured however by one Maxwell Lord. He walks over and pours himself a drink. “So, I have this venue till 6 AM tomorrow, which means, we can do whatever we want.”

“Can we talk about how horrible your product is?” Sam says bluntly and Lena laughs under her breath, eyeing Kara quick enough to see a small smirk cross her face.

“My product could help millions!”

Jack leans over to her and whispers as their other friends argue with Max. “What’s his product?”

She laughs softly, “Basically he made a device that can out people as aliens.”

“That’s bloody horrible.” He clears his throat, “Max, what are you on about? Are you trying to be mini Lex?”

They all laugh and Max rolls his eyes, “You don’t understand! These- These alien freaks are just walking among us!” He waves his glass around, “Who knows what they could do? I mean, remember that thing a few years back?”

They all look at him confused and he hits his head with his hand as if to knock the answer out of his brain. “That thing that people saw flying around out in the desert and shooting lasers from its eyes! And the government was like: ‘Oh it’s a secret thing we’re working on. It’s just a rocket.’ But then video proof came out that it was a literal woman flying up there? The government is working against us to hide these aliens that could harm us.” 

She scoffs, “That video was so obviously a hoax, Max. God, I knew you hadn’t changed.”

He throws his glass in her direction and it narrowly misses her, she only got hit by the liquid that came out. Everyone around her gasped and Kara was in front of Lena in the blink of an eye.

“Alright, alright, break it up, guys,” Sam said, eyeing Kara. “Blondie here seems to be ready to kill Max so why don’t we call it a night?”

Max throws his hands up, seemingly angrier, and Lena sees Kara’s hand reach down to her waistband below her jacket. Her breath catches in her throat and she quickly grabs Kara’s arm away. The blonde shakes off Lena’s hand after a moment clearly getting the message of her not wanting to shoot Max.

Jack laughs, “Maybe I should start showing up to more events if this vision in navy is going to be willing to shoot Max every time.”

Lena eyes him, “No one is shooting anyone, alright? We’re going.” She quickly hugged all of her friends goodbye and began walking off. Kara hesitated a moment before following her out. As they walked to where their car was supposed to be waiting for them Lena heard her friends shuffling out of the building as well, clearly fed up with Max.

As they got in the car Lena groaned.

“Are you alright?”

She nodded, “Yes, I’m just not a fan of having whisky on me.”

Kara laughed but it seemed forced, unnatural.

“Were you actually going to shoot Max?”

A heavy silence fell over them as Kara looked anywhere but Lena’s eyes. Lena waited patiently, she felt like she knew the answer but still. Kara sighed after a moment, fidgeting with the ring on her finger.

“It’s my job to protect you, Lena. Max threw a glass at your head and was getting more violent with each second. I figured he wasn’t armed, but I can’t take any chances.”

“You could have killed him.”

Kara tapped her fingers along her leg before she adjusted and pulled the gun from the holster on her hip. Lena gasped and Kara held up her free hand, “Relax. Look. There’s no magazine in it.” 

Sure enough, Kara clicked the magazine release, and nothing but an empty click came out of the gun. Lena gave her a puzzled look, confused as ever.

“It’s a scare tactic, if people know I’m carrying or they see me with a gun in hand they’re more likely to not try anything,” Kara explained before putting the unloaded gun back in her holster.

“Why don’t you just not shoot it?”

She sighs, “I’m not a fan of loaded guns on me.”

Lena just accepts the answer. It’s been too crazy of a night to press on for anything else, so when the car stops she just leaves Kara with a simple goodnight. Though her thoughts are still racing as she watches the car drive off.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright alright. Things are progressing. Hope you liked it. As always kudos and comments are appreciated, let me know what you guys think either in a comment or go to my tumblr, either one. Hope you guys have a great day/night.
> 
> tumblr: manwithaminivan


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena gets some horrible news and snaps a little.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it obvious how much I hate chapter summaries? Anyway, sorry for the bit of a longer wait, though this is a longer chapter so I hope that maybe makes up for it.

Lena was never a fan of mysteries. As a child she’d read every book she could get but tended to stay away from the crime and ‘who done it’ genre. She just wasn’t a fan of things she didn’t know, she likes things she has complete knowledge on. So, as she stares at the blonde woman outside her office doors, she fumes with rage. Because Kara Danvers is a mystery that she can’t solve.

Her foot taps absently against the floor, she’s not paying attention to it. Too busy trying to get some answers. Though she supposes she won't get any just staring at her. She watches carefully as the blonde shifts almost uncomfortably, rubbing at her ear. Lena sighs, and goes to her computer, pulling up the resume she was sent by Kara.

It had most of what is normally included on resumes. There’s contact information, employment history, special skills. She notes that Kara went straight from high school to the military, remembering their conversation from the car. She reads through the whole thing a few times, somehow getting more impressed with each read through.

Kara was a medal of honor recipient, a volunteer firefighter, a winter food drive volunteer, and even has a key to the city in Midvale. She looks from her computer to Kara, trying to piece it all together in her mind. Kara was an enigma that’s for sure. So far she has three Kara’s in her mind: Office Kara, Event Kara, and Casual Kara.

Office Kara is the one she sees most often. She’s alert but not stern, a kind smile always playing on her lips. She brings Lena food, coffee, stays with her till she leaves the office. She’s kind and sweet but always has this look in her eyes, as though she’s not fully present in the conversation, but listening for something else.

Then there's Event Kara. She’s seen her twice so far. She’s strong, stands taller, and commands a presence. She doesn’t take her eyes off Lena, even when she’s not close to her. She’s always there, always watching. If Lena’s honest she’s intimidated by this Kara. She remembers the gun, tensing slightly. Kara gave her some ease at the fact that it was unloaded, but still. This Kara might smile sometimes but it’s usually tight-lipped and tense. Event Kara was born to protect.

And finally, there’s Casual Kara. The one she eats with, the one she sees rarely but is a welcome appearance. Casual Kara loses some of the tension in her shoulders, smiling wider than usual. Lena remembers the time she spotted Kara outside of work, eating breakfast at a diner with her sister. She seemed happy, peaceful, so Lena didn’t interrupt them, simply getting her coffee and working in silence.

So, Kara’s made of layers. And Lena intends to unravel them all.

Her office door opens and she snaps herself away from staring, looking at her computer before looking up to see who entered, hoping she played it off. Jess stands a few feet in, a solemn look on her face. Lena smiles weakly, nervously. “Jess? Something wrong?”

Her assistant picks at the top of the newspaper in her hands, sighing. “I wanted you to hear it from someone you like. Not some stupid news reporter…”

Lena stands now, growing more nervous by the second. She walks over to her assistant. “What is it?”

Slowly the girl flips over the newspaper, putting it in front of Lena. She grabs it carefully and reads the headline.

_Lex Luthor out of Jail, on the Loose._

She drops the paper. Her own heartbeat filling her ears as it quickens. She laughs, running a hand through her hair and walking back to her desk. She grabs her purse, barely aware of Jess saying her name in the background. She sighs, “Clear my schedule for the rest of the day.”

Jess stares at her in disbelief. “Where are you going?”

She shrugs, “Away from here.”

She walks out of her office, past Kara, and to the elevator. She notices a person coming and standing next to her, hands firmly behind their back. She looks over to see, of course, Kara. She doesn’t say anything, just stepping into the elevator when it comes, pressing the button to the parking garage, happy she drove herself today.

“Lena?”

She turns, looking up at the taller woman. “Yes?”

“You don’t seem okay.”

She scoffs, “Aren’t you smart.” She internally hits herself at the tone she takes but doesn’t apologize for it. She watches as Kara opens her mouth to speak but no words come out. She feels bad.

The elevator doors open and the two of them step out, Lena trying to lose Kara but the woman stays on her, not phased by the quickening in pace.

“Lena.”

She ignores her, continuing to her car.

“Lena!”

She tells herself to use some self-control. She can feel tears stinging in her eyes, she swallows hard, trying to get them away. She stops at her car and begins to dig in her purse, trying to find her keys.

“Lena! Look at me!” A hand comes on her shoulder and turns her around hard, making her stumble slightly. She looks anywhere but at Kara, not wanting to face her. “What’s wrong?”

“You! You’re wrong!” She snaps, throwing her purse at the woman. Kara isn’t phased, however, simply catching the bag and holding it. “You’re just… You’re no one! There’s nothing on you from before you got back from the military! You’re a mystery, Kara, and I don’t like that!”

Kara looks at her with a puzzled look.

“I did some digging after Friday night. I looked into you and there’s no record of a Kara Danvers before four years ago. The only thing I could find was that you graduated from Midvale High!” She chokes back a sob, knowing she’ll regret this later, but right now she needs to get this out. Even if this anger isn’t exactly directed at Kara.

Kara sighs, “I don’t know what you want me to tell you, Lena.”

“The truth!”

“Why don’t we start with you telling me the truth? Why the hell are you going off on me?”

She rolls her eyes, of course, she’d manage to change the topic. The two of them stand there in the parking garage. Kara holding her bag, Lena wiping at her eyes with her sleeve. “Lex is out of jail.”

“What?”

“My maniac brother broke out of jail! I know you’re behind on our little feud but the last time we talked, he tried to kill me!”

Kara stumbles over her words, “Lena... “

“Don’t you Lena me.” She holds out her hand, “Give me my bag.”

“You’re in no state to be alone right now,” Kara says, and Lena can see the worry all over her face.

“Bag.”

Kara waits a moment before handing it over, stepping back from the car. Lena can see her watching her as she starts the car, leaving. As she drives to the exit she looks in her mirror, seeing Kara standing where she left her, hands in pockets.

* * *

She stood at her bar, TV playing in the background. No matter what channel she went to she couldn’t get away from it. From him. His smug mugshot was all over, people talked about her and him, even her mother was brought up. She sighed and turned off the TV, she couldn’t deal with hearing his name anymore.

It’d been a few hours but she couldn’t stop thinking about Kara. She felt horrible, guilt settling in her stomach along with other mixed emotions. She snapped, all the anger she felt about not being in control or having full knowledge over things just came out. She blames Lex in a way, if he hadn’t broken out she wouldn’t have gone off on Kara, she would’ve dealt with it herself. Yet, here she is.

Her phone’s been blowing up for a while, texts from her friends coming through. She didn’t look at any of them, not wanting to answer their how are you’s, because if she’s honest she doesn’t know how she is. She swirls her glass, getting lost in the way the golden liquid spins around.

There’s a knock on her door and she turns towards it. At first, she thinks she’s hallucinating, she is three whiskeys in. But then there’s another and she groans. She sets down her half-full glass and takes a breath, walking to her door. She hesitates before opening it, slightly worried about who could be on the other side. She looks to the small table next to the door, grabbing the pepper spray she keeps with her keys.

She opens the door and loosens her grip when she sees Kara standing there. She’s not in her work clothes anymore, simply dressed down in a white t-shirt, black sweats, and a loose black jacket. She seems upset, and Lena can’t help but feel angry at herself for most likely causing that. She sees Kara shift and realizes he hasn’t said anything.

“Oh. Kara.”

“Lena. Can I come in?”

She nods and sets the pepper spray back with her keys, closing the door behind her. Kara steps in and looks around for a second before clearing her throat. 

“How are you feeling?”

“I don’t know, how should one feel when their homicidal brother breaks out of prison?”

She expects a small smile or laugh from Kara but gets nothing but more worry written on the woman's features. She sighs, walking over to her couch. Kara follows, sitting in the chair across from her, hands folded.

“People are worried about you.”

“That’s a first.”

She scoffs, “Are you just going to keep joking?”

“It’s my life, Kara, I can deal with this how I want.”

“Lena, this isn’t just going to affect you personally. This is going to affect your safety. I came here to talk to you as a friend but if you don’t want to talk about it, fine. We can just talk about the job then.”

She shakes her head, “No. I don’t want to talk about your job.”

“With Lex being out of prison, I’m worried about him coming after you.” Kara ignored her ask. “So, I’m bringing in someone from my team to help me out. He’ll be setting up a new security system for L-Corp and your place.”

“Kara, just shut up.” 

“He’s coming tomorrow.”

She sighs, putting her head in her hands. “I don’t need new security systems.”

“You don’t have to pay extra or anything.”

“Money isn’t a problem, Kara.”

“Then what is?”

She glares at the woman across from her, “We’ve already had this conversation. You’re the problem.”

Kara looks away from her, “What do you want?”

“The truth.”

“I’ve told you the truth!” 

Lena shakes her head, “No, you haven’t!”

“Look, Lena, if you’re uncomfortable working with me, tell me.”

“I’m not uncomfortable.” She groans, rubbing her temples. “I just don’t like not knowing things.”

“What do you not know?”

“Your middle name, what you got a medal of honor for, where you live… I know nothing about you but you know everything about me! It’s not fair.”

Kara stands, pacing slightly. “My job is to know everything about you, Lena. If I don’t, you could die. No one wants that.”

“Debatable.”

She sighs, “Throughout my career, I’ve gained a lot of enemies. People who want me and anyone I care about dead.”

“What does that have to do with me?”

“I care about you, Lena!” Kara throws her hands up. “I care about you.”

“Kara…”

Kara looked up at her, a mix of pain and sincerity in her eyes. She took a breath, “My middle name is Marie, I live in an apartment about 20 minutes away.”

Lena nods, “And how’d you got a medal of honor?”

She sighs and looks dead at Lena, “I got shot in the head protecting my squad. In the words of some higher-ups I ‘went above the call of duty.” She rolls her eyes lightly and scoffs, “And all it got me was a medal and a scar.”

Lena gasped lightly, “Kara. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have pressured you to tell me…”

“No, it’s whatever. I lived.”

“How? I mean… People don’t normally survive headshots.”

Kara chuckles, shrugging. “Modern medicine I suppose.”

Lena sighed, fidgeting with her fingers. Her stomach is doing flips. So much just happened, Kara just said so much. She watches as Kara clenches and unclenches her fists and she can see the slight tremble in her left hand. Kara quickly shoves her hand into her pocket.

“So, yeah. Um, tomorrow morning I’ll have my guy come in and do security for L-Corp, then around 5 he can come back here and do your place?” Kara says.

“Yes, that’s fine.”

“Great, great.” Kara turns for the door.

She stands up, following her. “Um, thank you.”

Kara puts her hand on the doorknob, not turning when she spoke. “Yeah, anytime.” She opens the and steps out. Lena sighs when it closes behind her.

* * *

The next day was awkward, to say the least. People in the office stared at her, their looks ranged from worry to confusion. She figured threw as already tons of gossip out around it, around her. But she was never one to cower and hide, so she went to all her meetings and wrote all her emails.

At around noon her office door opened and Kara came in, followed closely by a smaller, nervous-looking man. She stopped a few feet away from Lena’s desk, not even looking at her. The man bumped into Kara when she stopped. 

“Winn-”

“Sorry, sorry.” The man, Winn, stepped out from behind her and smiled. “Hi, wow, you’re really Lena Luthor.”

Kara elbowed him in the side and he winced. 

“Sorry, I’m a big fan.”

She shook her head, “No need to apologize.” She stood from her desk and made her way over to the two. “Always glad to meet someone who likes my work.”

He stares at her in disbelief, mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. She smiles softly at him. “So, the security?”

“Right! Right! Uh,” He walks over to her office’s couch, sitting down and opening his bag, pulling out a computer. He opens it up and starts typing some stuff. Lena looks at his computer, it’s nice, clean, though the outside is covered in stickers. Inside his bag she can see another computer, this one not stickered. It’s slightly familiar, and it takes her a moment but Lena remembers seeing those exact make and models in the place she was brought after the shooting a few months ago.

“So, I have someone outside who helped me set up the cameras, and he’ll help me make sure they work.” He motioned her over and called someone on his phone, putting it on speaker.

“James?”

There’s a pause before another man’s voice comes through the phone, “Yeah. You ready?”

Winn types a bit on his computer and Lena watches as a few different screens pop up, each having a different view of the outside of the building. “Yeah, go ahead.”

A few seconds pass before Lena sees a tall, well-built man walk in front of each camera, waving before moving onto the next.

“What’s so special about these security cameras? The ones I had worked just fine.”

Winn looks up at her, “These are designed with facial recognition. Hey, James, stand in front of 3B really fast.”

James walks over to a camera and stands in front of it, Lena recognizes where he’s at as the front door to the building. Winn presses a key and all of a sudden that screen comes to the front, a few pop-ups with data coming in. After a minute the computer beeps, and a screen appears to the right of James’ face, full of information.

James Olsen, art director at CatCo. There are some other sections, like if he has an appointment and any connections in the building he has. Lena notes that the only two names under the connections are Kara Danvers and Andrea Rojas. She nods, impressed. 

“Are we good?” James asks over the phone.

“Yeah, we’re good. I’ll see you at five.” 

The phone hangs up and James disappears from view and Lena moves from the couch, seeing now that Kara has left her office. Lena sighs, pushing some hair out of her face. Winn closes his computer, looking at her.

“Is everything okay, Ms. Luthor?”

She turns and smiles at him, “Please call me Lena… Ms. Luthor makes me sound like my mother.”

He nods, looking out the glass to where Kara stands. “It’s nothing personal… If Kara is icing you out.”

She sighs, “I know. I’m just not a fan of things I can’t figure out.”

He messes with his collar, “Um, look, I probably shouldn’t tell you this, it might be a breach of her privacy, but… Kara’s time in the military took its toll. She was diagnosed with complex PTSD. She doesn't tell anyone, she's still slightly ashamed of it. Her father was a military man, and he viewed any type of mental illness as a weakness, and I guess that stuck with her.”

“Oh, I didn't know.”

“She's good at covering it up. She's had a lot of practice in hiding the tremor and episodes.”

“Is that why she doesn’t carry a loaded gun?”

He looks at her confused a moment, opening his mouth to speak before closing it again, rubbing the back of his neck. “Um, sure, probably.”

She nods, "Thanks."

He smiles, “Of course. I’ll see you at 5? Your place?”

She nods. He gives her an awkward thumbs up before pushing past her and leaving, stopping next to Kara. She sees Kara’s shoulders bounce with laugher and she smiles softly, making her way back to her desk. She watches as Kara and Winn do some type of silly handshake before Winn leaves. It gives her some comfort, knowing more about Kara, and as she goes back to work she hopes soon she’ll be able to crack through more of her bodyguards' layers. That is if Lex doesn’t get to her before she does.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo, plot building! Anyway, had fun writing this one, got to see a bit more into Kara and we're building up their relationship yay. Anyway, kudos and comments are always appreciated. Let me know what you like, what you don't like, what you want to see in the future, etc. You can also send stuff to my tumblr, and I'll do my best to answer any questions or respond to anything.
> 
> tumblr: manwithaminivan


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet the friends game night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ‘Woah two chapters in two days? Sam how are you so productive?’ I procrastinated on all the stuff I should’ve been doing instead of this. Anyway, my computer broke so I’m posting this from my phone and praying there won’t be formatting mistakes. 
> 
> (first part is karas pov, i’m going to try and be including her pov more often)

_It’s all so… vivid._

_The sounds, the smells, the feelings._

_She hears the sound of her door opening and looks at it. J’onn walks in, or at least she thinks it’s J’onn, they have the same face but something is different. She smiles back and gets off her bed, giving the man a firm handshake that turns into a hug. He says something that she can’t hear for some reason. His mouth moves but no sounds come out, the only thing she can hear is the bustle of people walking and talking._

_His mouth stops moving and he looks at her expectantly. She nods and smiles, hoping it’s enough and he gives her a quick nod of confirmation before leaving. Something feels off though. This isn’t how she remembers her room. Things are out of place._

_She moves to her nightstand and picks up a framed picture. It’s not the one she put in there. Instead of her and Alex the day of her deployment, it’s her in a hospital bed, eyes closed. Her head hurts all of a sudden and she drops the frame, the glass shattering. She groans and holds her head, closing her eyes tight against the pain._

_It feels like someone is jackhammering her head, cracking her skull open. She stumbles backward out of the room, expecting to be in the hallway but appearing in an operating room. Machine’s beep around her, and she struggles to focus, walking towards the operation. She gasps when she sees herself on the table, there’s blood splattered all over her._

_The pain in her head increases and she can’t help the scream of pain she lets out. No one in the room reacts. She moves away from the table, pushing through double doors. There’s a bright light before she’s back in her room. Lights flash and dance all around, she looks to the ground and sees no broken frame. She walks over slowly, seeing it placed neatly back on the nightstand. The glass seemingly put back together piece by piece, the cracks still there._

_Suddenly the pain stops._

_She sighs, taking her hands off her head slowly. But then she feels something cool against the side of her head, and the unmistakable sound of a gun cocking. She tells herself to fight back, to save herself. But her body doesn’t follow her commands as she hears a voice tell her to turn around. Slowly, she does so._

_The man standing before her has no face. It’s all a blur. Like someone had marked it out of her brain. She blinks, the room becoming less and less visible as her vision goes out. She struggles to stay standing as the cool barrel of the gun presses against her forehead._

_This isn’t how it happened. This is not how she was shot. This is fake, it’s not real._

_“You don’t have to do this.,” She says, but her words come out slurred._

_There’s an almost sinister laugh before there’s a loud bang. For a moment nothing changes. Then the man disappears and her hand goes to her forehead, coming back with blood covering her fingers. She falls to the floor, looking at her hand as best she can with her failing vision. There’s a slight green tint to her blood._

_How is she bleeding? This isn’t supposed to be possible._

_She feels her body lifted up and looks around. Everyone’s faces are blurred, but there are at least three people around her. She’s placed onto something, a stretcher maybe._

_But that’s not right. They weren’t there when it happened. This is just her mind playing games with her!_

_Why is everyone faceless?_

_Why can’t she hear anything but repeated footsteps and conversations?_

_One step, two steps, pause. Someone says something about the weather. One step, two steps, pause. Someone says something about the weather._

_Her name is yelled at her. But it doesn’t sound familiar. Kara? Kara!_

She feels a hand fall onto her shoulder and instinctively grabs the arm attached to it, gripping hard. She only lets go when she hears a yelp of pain and she immediately goes back. Her eyes struggle to adjust to reality, the lights seem brighter than normal.

“Oh, Lena, I’m so sorry.”

* * *

Her arm hurts like hell, which is shocking considering how Kara seemed to use very little pressure. She hears an apology, looking at where she was grabbed. “Um, it’s alright. Are you okay?”

Kara nods, but her smile is tight and her shoulders are tense. She messed with the cuffs of her jacket. “Yes, yes, I’m fine. I just zoned out. Sorry.”

Her eyes wander to Kara’s hand, which is now shoved into her pocket. She can barely make out the way it’s trembling, it’s well hidden by the fabric. They stand outside of her office, it’s late, and no one else is there anymore. Lena had meant to invite Kara into her office, feeling bad that the woman was out there all alone. But she called her a few times and got no response. It was only after about 30 minutes of Kara just standing there eerily still that she went out. Only to get hurt.

Kara looked upset, and Lena wanted to do anything to make it so she wasn’t. She opened her mouth to speak but Kara interrupted her. 

“I need to use the bathroom.”

The blonde pushed past her and into the restrooms. She sighed and made her way back into her office, finishing up some end of quarter financials that she needs. She kept looking back to the door, expecting to see Kara, but she stayed in the bathroom. She didn’t show back up till an hour later when Lena was packing her things.

She walks out and stops in front of Kara, “So, I’m leaving. I was wondering if you’re good to drive yourself home?”

She looks at her watch, “Oh, shoot. I’m already late. I have a uh, game night thing with friends at my place. I bet they’ve already let themselves in.”

Lena smiles softly, “That’s cute. Thought that was only something people did in movies.”

Kara laughs tensely, “Yeah, we do one every chance we can get. It’s hectic with everyone’s schedules so it’s hard to get it in.”

“Well, I don’t want to keep you here any longer. Let’s go.”

They both walked to the elevator in silence. Kara pulled out her phone when the doors closed and texted someone. Lena didn’t bother to ask who. Eventually, the doors opened and they both stepped out. Before they could part ways, Kara turned to her.

“Um… Would you maybe want to come over?”

Lena froze. “What?”

“No pressure! It’s just… well, James and his sister just said they couldn’t make it so we need one more to make the number even. So, I was wondering if maybe you’d want to. Also, I’d like to make up for the bruise you might have.” Kara rubbed the back of her neck with her right hand.

“Um, are you sure I wouldn’t be imposing?”

“Of course not!” Kara smiled sincerely. “I’m inviting you.”

She takes a moment to think it over. She’d be in Kara’s home. It was an enticing offer, though after what just happened she’s apprehensive. But Kara seems like she genuinely wants to make up for it, and she can’t say no.

“Sure. Send me your address.”

Kara smiles, “Great.”

* * *

She’s not sure how long exactly she’s stood outside the door. She had seen Kara’s car park across the street from an apartment complex, the woman walking inside. She spent about 2 more minutes in the car before getting in the elevator and going to the door that Kara said was hers. She could hear speaking and laughing inside.

Slowly she knocked on the door, taking a breath. The speaking halted before she heard footsteps coming to the door and opening it. Kara smiled at her, “I was beginning to think you backed out.”

She shook her head and walked inside when the woman moved out of the doorway for her. She looked around. It was a nice apartment, not exactly what Lena pictured. It was warm and felt like home. Lena assumed she’d be met with cold colors and zero things to show personality. But she was met with the opposite. 

Pictures of who Lena assumed were friends and family hung on the wall, as well as gorgeous paintings that added a nice contrast to the almost child like nature of the place. It was an open floor plan, Lena could see Kara’s bedroom in a large room at the end of the place on the right. Lena then landed on the group of people now staring at her, sitting on couches around a table.

She recognized Winn and Alex, they sat next to each other, Alex saying something to Winn to make him laugh. Across from them was the woman from Max’s event, Nia, Lena thinks her name was. She sat next to a man with slick backed hair wearing all black, they both smiled at her.

Kara walked over to them, Lena following close behind. “Guys, this is Lena. Lena this is Winn, Alex, Lena and that’s Barney. Or as we call him Brainy.”

Lena waves at them, “Hi, great to see you all.”

Alex eyes her and Lena feels awkward. The last time she talked with Kara’s older sister the woman was insinuating she was just like her brother, and she’s sure the feelings haven’t gone, especially since Lex is out now. 

She likes Winn though, the man has come over a few time since installing the cameras, talking with Lena about any upgrades he might bring in the future to them and her own work. She enjoys his company and presence. In a way he reminds her of a nerdier Jack. 

Kara takes a seat on one of the couches and pats the space next to her. Lena goes and sits, hands in her lap. She felt slightly overdressed. Everyone was either in jeans or sweatpants and she was sat in a button up and a pencil skirt, even Kara had managed to change into sweats and a long sleeve shirt with some kind of military-looking symbol in the corner.

Nia clears her throat and leans forward, “Alright, game night. Tonight the game of choice is Heads Up. I’ve got the app, we’ll split into teams. Team with the most points by the end, wins bragging rights and…” She takes a dramatic pause and reaches to the side of the couch, pulling out a shiny plastic trophy. “The coveted game night trophy.”

Winn chuckles, “It’s not coveted. We bought it at Dollar Tree a week ago.”

Nia shushes him, “It’s coveted!”

They all laugh and Lena chuckles softly, watching as Nia pulls out her phone and pulls up the app. “I’m afraid I haven’t played this game before.”

Kara looks at her and smiles, “No problem. You’ll just be on my team, I’ll walk you through it.”

The game starts with Alex and Winn going first. Alex got extremely frustrated when Winn couldn’t guess Canada and Lena couldn’t help but laugh. Then Winn went and got even more frustrated than his partner when she couldn’t guess Iron Man. Kara laughed and tallied up their score, coming to a total of 5 correct guesses out of 30.

“This is why I always partner with Kelly,” Alex says, taking a swig of her beer.

Lena must have been obvious in her confusion because Kara turned and whispered to her. “Kelly’s Alex’s girlfriend, and James’ sister. They normally partner up.”

She nods, “Oh, I see.”

The game continues on with Nia and Brainy next, and Lena finds herself enjoying Brainy’s manner of speech and little anecdotes. He’s very literal, which everyone seems to find endearing and she feels warm at that. Nia takes her time and explains everything in a way he can understand. They work well as a team. When it’s Nia’s turn to guess, she gets almost all of them, making their score 24 out of 30.

“Alright, it’s our turn,” Kara says, taking the phone that’s passed to her and going up to the front of the room like the others before them.

She takes a breath. “Let’s do it.”

It went well, surprisingly. Kara is an amazing guesser and Lena was surprised with how many she got even with Lena’s more non-specific or niche clues. It was nice, and she relished in the feeling of Kara’s hand on hers when they high-fived. Kara got 10 out of her 15, then it was her turn. She slowly took the phone and stepped up to the front.

They got through all of them insanely well. Lena didn’t miss a single one. Kara’s smile grew wider as they continued on. However, once they got on the final question her face dropped slightly and she stumbled over her words.

“Kara, come on!”

The blonde sighed, rubbing her hands on her leg. “He’s bald and super smart!”

‘What? Um… Steve Jobs?”

“No. He’s kind of bad? I guess?”

She scoffs, “You guess?”

Nia cuts in, “10 seconds!”

“Kara come on we need this one to win!”

She sighs, “He’s your brother.”

Of course. “Lex Luthor.” She flips the phone down and it dings, the timer going off. 

Nia groans dramatically. “Another victory taken from our grasp!” Her head falls onto Brainy’s shoulder. “How will I ever recover?”

Brainy looked at her, “I believe you’ll recover by eating ice cream, crying, plotting your revenge.”

Nia laughs softly before sitting back up, getting the trophy and handing it to Kara. “Congrats, I suppose.”

Kara smiles, “Ah come on, Nia, don’t be a sore loser.

* * *

It was around ten that everyone piled out, saying their goodbyes. They all told her it was nice to meet her and that they hope they can do it again in the future. She smiles and says maybe. 

Now it’s just her and Kara. She sighs, looking between the blonde and the door. “I should get going.”

“Right, yeah. Um, I had fun tonight.”

“Me too.” She smiles and makes her way to the door, but before opening it, Kara tells her to wait. “What?”

Kara walks over to the couch and grabs the trophy, holding it up and giving it to Lena. “Something to remember the night by.”

She laughs happily, “Thank you.” She puts her hand in the door knob, but something pulls on her heart. “Um, Kara, earlier when you zoned out… was that all it was?”

She gives a small nod, looking down at her feet a moment. “Uh, yeah, yeah. Just had a long day, I guess… I’m really sorry about your arm! I didn’t mean to.”

“No harm done. In fact, I’ve almost forgot about it.”

She knew Kara was lying about just zoning out but why pry into it? That’d only cause problems. 

“I’ll see you Sunday?”

Right. Sam’s benefit dinner, she’d nearly forgotten. “Yes, see you then. Enjoy your Saturday, Kara.”

“You too, Lena.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That was fun, see y’all next chapter. If you have questions or maybe want just want to talk you can head to my tumblr. 
> 
> As always comments and kudos are appreciated. Let me know what you think. 
> 
> tumblr: manwithaminivan


	6. Chapter Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sam's benefit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter contains the idea that prompted this story, so it was fun to rewrite and explore a bit. Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.
> 
> tw // shooting, blood

“Aunt Lena!”

Arms wrap around Lena’s waist and she smiles wide, hugging her tight. “Ruby! Ah, darling, it’s been too long. You’ve gotten so tall!”

The kid lets go of her and steps back, smiling. “I’ve missed you.”

“I’ve missed you too.”

Sam comes out of her bedroom then, smiling at her daughter and her friend. She’s dressed in an emerald green off the shoulder dress. It’s gorgeous. She makes her way over to Lena.

“You couldn’t have gotten dressed before you got here?”

She looks down at the dress bag she’s holding, “I was in a rush.”

Sam chuckles, “We’ll be right back, Rubes. Why don’t you finish your homework up?”

Ruby nods and walks off into the kitchen, meanwhile Sam leads Lena into her bedroom. Lena sighs and sets the dress bag down, unzipping it. She chose a nice black dress, it falls a little bit past her knees and has a sharp plunging neckline.

“Ooh, showing off for someone?”

Lena scoffs at her, taking the dress. “Who in the world would I be showing off to?”

Sam shrugs, watching as Lena steps into the bathroom, keeping the door open but staying out of sight. “Oh, I don’t know… maybe a certain dashing bodyguard?”

“Samantha Arias! How dare you insinuate such things!” She slips her dress on and adjusts a few things, sighing when she’s satisfied. She walks out and glares at Sam. “I am not showing off for my bodyguard!”

Sam laughs, “Well then I’ll take it as your showing off for me because I think this is the best your boobs have ever looked.”

Lena rolls her eyes, though she smiles slightly at the odd compliment. “Not everything is sexual, Sam. Sometimes a woman just wants to look good.”

“Of course, of course. It just helps if Ms. Danvers happens to stare at your chest.”

She slaps her friend's shoulder, “Shut up.”

“Where is Kara anyway?”

She sighs, zipping the dress bag back up. “I told her to wait in the car for us.”

Sam gasps, “You’re making her stay in the car? Like a dog? What’d you do, roll a window down for her?”

“She said sure! It’s not a bad thing!”

“Lena Luthor! Invite her inside right now!”

Lena groans, “What’s she gonna do?”

“I don’t know! But we aren’t leaving for a while, why make her sit in the back of a car?”

Lena sighs, nodding slightly. Sam is right. She pulls out her phone and pulls up Kara’s contact, realizing how little she actually uses it. She shoots her a text telling her she can come inside. “There, happy?”

Sam smiles, “Very.”

They walk out of the bedroom and Lena goes and stands next to Ruby, looking at the worksheet she’s working on. There’s a knock on the door and Sam goes to get it, she hears her say something in greeting and watches carefully as Kara walks in, hands clasped in front of her.

“Hi, Ms. Arias, great to see you again.”

Sam nods, “Please, call me Sam, and yes it’s great to see you. Especially since we aren’t dealing with Max this time.”

Lena rolls her eyes at the mention of his name and Ruby looks up at her. “Max? As in Max Lord?”

She nods, “Never trust a man named Maxwell, Rubes.”

The girl smiles and laughs softly, turning her attention back to her worksheet. Lena listens to Sam and Kara’s small conversation.

“So, Kara… how long have you been in the private security business?”

“About 3 years.”

Sam whistles sharply, “I was expecting longer, you’re quite impressive.”

“Well, I was in the military for a bit… Guess it gave me a leg up on the competition.”

Sam laughs at that, “You single?”

That’s when she decides to cut in, “Woah, Woah. Sam, let’s not pry into Kara’s personal life shall we?”

Kara chuckles, “It’s no problem, Lena. Um, yes, I am single.”

“Why the ring on the finger?”

Kara looks down at it, “Ah, I was given it by a friend a while back… I wear it at events, sort of like a good luck thing.”

“Mentor?”

Kara nods, “J’onn J'onzz. Haven’t talked with him in a while, but uh, it gives me comfort.”

Lena sighs softly, smiling. Their little conversation is broken up however by Ruby calling from where she sits at the bar. “Aunt Lena, can you help me?”

She walks over, and sighs. “What’s up?”

“What is Luminism?”

She takes a moment to think, “What’s the subject?”

Kara cuts in, “Luminism is a style of landscape painting, was super big around 1850 through 1875. It’s usually characterized by the effect of light in landscape. Often the art pieces reflect calm, and reflective water with gorgeous hazy skies. It's quite a beautiful style.”

Everyone looks at her. Lena with disbelief, Ruby with satisfaction, and Sam with an impressed look. Lena laughs in shock, “What was that?”

Kara shrugs, a slight blush on her cheeks. “I was a huge art history buff in high school, I wanted to major in it, but uh, life kind of changed my plans.”

“Interesting. I wouldn't have pegged you for art history,” Sam says.

“Why? Cause I’m 6’2 and very well built?”

Sam sighs, “Maybe.”

“Yeah, well, I used to be a bit different.”

Lena wanted to pry into that and nearly did but a knock came on the door. Sam looked to it, “Babysitter. Which is our cue.”

Kara smiles and Lena walks over to Ruby, hugging her. “Bye, Rubes.”

“Bye, Aunt Lena! Bye, Kara!” She waves at the blonde and Kara waves back, giving her a wide smile.

Sam lets the babysitter in and made some small talk before leading Kara and Lena out of her house. They all piled into the back of Lena’s car, Sam and Lena sitting beside each other with Kara across from them. 

* * *

They arrive at the venue around 6:30, earlier than everyone else. Sam shows them around before walking off to speak with someone, most likely a venue operator. Lena turns to Kara who’s looking around.

“I’ve worked with a lot of rich people, but I don’t think I’ll ever get used to how beautiful the places you guys rent are.”

Lena laughs, looking around with her. “Yes, well, I guess these are perks to owning companies.”

“Okay so, I know you’re CEO of L-Corp and Andrea CatCo… But what about Sam?”

“She worked with me for a few years at L-Corp back when I first acquired it, one of the best employees I ever had… Then she decided to quit on me and acquired a kids hospital. She started a whole thing off it.”

Kara’s mouth fell slightly open, “Arias Children’s Hospital… That makes sense. I assume this benefit is for funding?”

“Yes. She’s incredible. An incredible entrepreneur, mother, friend…” 

Kara smiles, “You two sound close.”

“We are.”

* * *

The event starts and it’s mainly just soft mingling and talk of politics. The press was of course invited so Lena stayed away from the main crowds. Kara never left her side, bringing her a drink whenever she asked. Eventually, though the press found their way to her, and she was hounded with questions.

_Lena, how are you since the shooting?_

_Are you scared about Lex?_

_Has your brother contacted you?_

_Are you dating anyone?_

Sam found her and shooed the people away best she could, whispering to Lena about how there’s a space upstairs. Sam took the presses attention and guided them away with fake promises of answers on a different date. Lena motioned for Kara to follow as they walked to a staircase, making their way up.

When they got up there it was dark, the only light coming from the moon outside. Lena walked over to the windows, looking out of them. Kara appeared next to her, standing under the moonlight.

“It’s a beautiful night.”

She nods, “Yes, it is.” She looks to Kara, “Do you ever get tired of your job, Kara?”

The woman seems taken aback by the question.

“Sorry, it's just been on my mind recently. I mean… You leave the marines only to come to be shot at more?”

Kara shrugs, letting out a small chuckle, “Um, I’ve never thought of it that way.”

“How do you think of it?”

“I joined the military for three reasons-- I couldn’t afford college, my dad would be very disappointed if I didn’t, and I like protecting people… protecting things. What better way to do that than join the institute that says its entire mission is to serve and protect? So when I got out, I felt an emptiness in me, I needed to be protecting something. Hence starting my own private security business."

Lena nods, “I get the feeling you didn’t like your time there much though.”

She sighs, “I was good at what I did… sadly.”

Lena looks up at Kara, waiting till she met her eyes to speak. “What did you do?”

Kara looks away from her, and Lena takes the moment to appreciate how well the moonlight looks on her. She’s glowing, she’s stunning. “I have to use the restroom.”

And with that Kara turned from her, heading back downstairs. She sighed and looked back to the window. It was her excuse every time Lena asked her a question Kara didn’t want to answer. Her mind wanders to why Kara wouldn’t want to answer her questions. Though she then remembers what Winn told her and figures that’s a good explanation.

“Lena Luthor.”

There’s a loud click and she freezes, tensing. 

“Turn around, don’t make a sound, or I shoot.”

She does as the voice says, turning slowly with her hands up as she does. The man before her is dressed in a nice, sleek black suit, a press badge around his neck. She looks him up and down, before focusing on the gun that’s in his hand.

“Who are you?”

He laughs, “Why would I ever tell you that?”

She shrugs, “Well, you’re about to kill me so what would it matter?”

He presses his gun into her forehead, “You think this is funny?”

She swallows hard, “Extremely.”

“I’m going to kill you.”

She needs to stall. If she can stall, there’s a higher chance of someone coming to help her. Of Kara coming to help her. She stares the man down, he’s clearly angry, there’s a vein practically popping out of his head.

“There are over 400 people downstairs, how are you going to get out of here without someone seeing you?” 

“The roof.” He pulls the gun back slightly and seems to ready himself.

Her heartbeat picks up and she wills it to stop, trying to slow her breaths. “Did my brother send you?”

The man takes a moment to think if answering her question is worth it, “Yes, he did. Now stop asking questions.”

“Why? You have all the time in the world.”

“No, I don't. He said I needed to have it done before she got to me.”

She raises a brow, “Before who gets to you?

She doesn’t get an answer as there are two loud bangs. The man falls to the ground and warm liquid splatters against her face. She’s frozen in place, unable to move. She sees a figure moving towards her and can faintly hear the sound of people yelling and running on the floor below them.

“Lena!”

Her vision is unfocused as she looks around, seeing the familiar blue eyes and blonde hair right before her. She struggles to stay standing as she watches Kara. There are police sirens in the background.

“Lena… I need you to stay focused alright?”

Kara’s voice is distant as she speaks, but Lena nods along.

“The police are coming, they’re gonna ask what happened. They’re going to question me, but it’s going to be okay. Um, you're probably hyped up on adrenaline, which is why you can't feel that right now."

Feel what? Whatever, she doesn't care.

“You-” She struggles to get the words out. “I thought it wasn’t loaded.”

She never expected this. Kara’s blue eyes that she had come to love were glazed over, a cold rage filling them. Her chest heaved with scared breaths, she doesn’t know why this is affecting her so much. Maybe it’s because it was clear Kara was no stranger to this. Her actions were too smooth, her expression too emotionless… She was clearly unfazed by the man’s death.

She looked down at her feet to where the man was slumped over, head bleeding profusely. She gasped, shaking. She stepped away from the body, needing to get a grip. She looked between Kara and the body, not wanting to believe her kind bodyguard who just helped a 14-year-old with her homework did this.

There were loud, muffled footsteps then yelling as people came up the stairs. She watched as Kara threw the gun aside and moved away from the body, getting down on her knees. There were guns pointed at her as she moved her hands onto her head, staring at Lena. And as she stared back she spotted a hint of emotion she didn’t expect to see. Behind the cold anger, there was fear. Not fear for herself, but fear for Lena. Suddenly there's a sharp pain in her side and she slumps down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh yeah, a small cliff hanger. I'll try to get the next chapter out as soon as possible. Thanks for reading. Comments and kudos always appreciated.
> 
> tumblr: manwithaminivan


	7. Chapter Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Confrontation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, I am so sorry this took longer than usual to put out. I was unhappy with each version I wrote, still not as happy as I could be with this one but it's the best version. Hope you enjoy.
> 
> tw // nightmare/flashback, torture (nothing to graphic, it's pretty brief)

_All she feels is pain. And it’s a strange feeling. She’s never felt pain before in her life, but these last few days… weeks? months? Whatever. She’s lost track of time. But all she’s felt is pain for the duration of it. Her mind has been foggy, the only thing keeping her awake the looming threat of a person coming back. She listens as well as she can to the footsteps, always able to tell which ones belong to different people._

_She’s been thrown back into her room, or cell would be the more appropriate term. She groans under the green light that is emitted from the large light in the ceiling. Today wasn’t as bad as usual, no knives or weapons other than heavy booted feet and rough fists. Her ribs hurt with every breath she takes, but she can’t give in. No matter how many questions they ask, no matter how many times they threaten her family… she can’t give in._

**_Where are the files?_ **

_Do not answer._

**_Where’s the DEO located?_ **

_Do not break._

_It’s a never-ending cycle. Where’s the base, who is this, what is that? Why is she like Superman? She never answers, of course, but it never ends well for her. It’s only in the time she spends after the interrogations that she even thinks about it. During them, she blocks it all out. Sometimes she thinks about how she should have said no when first asked to join the DEO, but then her father’s unpleased face flashes in her mind and she realizes this is what she had to do._

_She’s listed as a marine, but she’s really part of a special task force for people like her. People who aren’t exactly… people. Some are equipped with technological pieces that give them super strength, others’ minds are enhanced making them geniuses, then some are like her, and are just aliens._

_Her door whips open and she freezes a moment, staring up at the ceiling from her cold metal bed. She’s never visited twice in a day. Two strong arms lift her, throwing her over their shoulder with one smooth motion, and she doesn’t have the strength to fight back. She’s marched into a place she’s never seen before, her hands are untied, only to be bound again above her head. She laughs at the irony of someone once called the girl of steel being strung up like a punching bag._

_The man who carried her in there leaves, and she’s stuck there for a few minutes, arms getting sore. She looks around her, the room is dark, only a few dim lightbulbs hanging from the ceiling. Her vision focuses on a table a few feet away, she can’t make out what’s on it very well, but she very clearly sees the outline of a gun._

_There’s a small creaking sound before footsteps come closer to her. A hand creeps around her side, lifting her shirt. Cold hands feel over her sides, pressing against bruising and scars. She winces with some touches, trying to get away, but the hand keeps her in place._

_“Oh how the mighty fall.”_

_She doesn’t recognize the voice. He’s new. She tries to get a good look at his face but it’s too dim, and she’s too tired. He hums a little tune, looking her up and down, like a predator watching his prey. He walks over to the table she saw earlier. “You know what I’m humming?”_

_She doesn’t answer him, simply glaring at the back of his head._

_He chuckles, low and sick, “Not much of a talker, hm?” He pushes the table closer, and Kara makes out the different types of surgical instruments. After a moment he flips on a radio, and the song he was just humming comes on. “It’s called_ _Marlène, it’s a french song. It’s about an actress being the last thing dying soldiers see…”_

_A chill goes down her spine and he seems to notice, a smirk growing on his face._

_“I’m not an actress, but I hope I’m good enough.”_

_She doesn’t remember much of it. Just that she’s bleeding and so very tired by the end of it. Tears well in her eyes, but she forces them back, not willing to show weakness in front of this man. He sighs, dropping the bloody scalpel back onto the tray. It’s the last tool on the tray, well, second to last she supposes, there’s still the gun._

_“I’ve been instructed to give you one last chance.”_

_She scoffs._

_He smiles, “We’ve already got it figured out that you’re not human, and that you’re not a marine…” He takes the gun off the table, looking at it. “We figured out who you work for, who your family is.”_

_She tenses at that. She has no way of knowing if it’s true. They never actually gave her the names of her family, which made her think it was just a threat. Still…_

_“Last chance, Kara Zor-El… Where are the CADMUS files?”_

_She can’t give it up. The DEO has been collecting evidence against CADMUS for a year now, if she gave it up their entire case would fall apart. She’d be the reason these disgusting people get to roam free._

_He comes closer to her, an eyebrow perched in question._

_“The files…” Instead of finishing her sentence she spits out the combination of blood and saliva that had collected in her mouth, relishing in the satisfaction of seeing it go across his face. He laughs and turns, wiping it off with a towel._

_“You’re a very brave soul… Maybe they’ll give you a medal of honor. Too bad you won’t be at the ceremony.” His finger goes to the trigger and pulls._

She wakes up gasping for air. She stares at her hands, at the floor, at the two people around her. They stare and she calms herself down, not willing to make a fool of herself. She groans when she remembers where she is, sitting in the cell of a police precinct at 1 AM. She’s been in here for almost 3 hours. She must have fallen asleep.

She gets up off the bench, going over to the bars. She waits a moment before reaching out and catching the arm of an officer, she reaches for her taser and Kara removes her hand. The officer relaxes slightly but moves away from the bars. “Hey, when am I being cleared?”

“Whenever whoever’s on your case can sign your release papers.”

She sighs, “Who’s on my case?”

“Uhhh, I believe Detective Ramos is.” She points over to a desk where no one sits, but Kara can see her papers sitting on top of them

“Thank you.”

The officer nods and walks away, disappearing into a room. She looks back at the two men in the cell with her, both of them clearly drunk. “What’d you guys do?”

The older man, with gray hair and wrinkled features, shrugs, “Public urination.”

She nods, “And you?”

This guy is much younger, dressed in a very nice suit. Kara can practically smell daddy's money coming off of him. He’s a much more composed drunk compared to the older man, and he seems to have a great dislike for him. “I did nothing.”

“Obviously it wasn’t nothing if you landed in here, kid.”

He scoffs, glaring at the old man. “Well, for your information, I may have gotten into a little fight.”

She looks down at the man’s knuckles, they’re bruised and a bit bloody. She hums. 

“You lost, clearly,” the old man says.

“No, I did not!” He raises his voice, practically squaring up.

“Oh please! Pretty boy like you could never win a fight.”

That’s all it takes to set the young man off and he goes after the older man, pounding on him repeatedly. Kara’s overwhelmed by it all, her eyes ring a bit more with each punch that lands. It doesn’t take long before the cell opens and a bunch of cops come in. She hesitates for a moment, this is the perfect chance… She does have superspeed…

She’s there and back within seconds, managing to copy Detective Ramos’s signature really well from some other papers on his desk. She’s back in the cell before anyone even notices, watching as the old man is pulled out and there’s an ambulance called. She gets the officer from before attention, “I think my papers are signed.”

The officer turns towards the desk, looking at the papers. “Ah, looks like they are. You’re free to go, Ms. Danvers.”

She smiles, “Wonderful.”

* * *

The bullet grazed her, making a deep gash in her side, simply needing lots of cleaning up and some pain meds. According to a few doctors, the only reason it didn’t hit her fully was because her bodyguard’s shot went off first. And now she’s wide awake in her own private hospital room. Apparently, Andrea paid a lot of money for one with a balcony. So, she’s standing on it, thinking, toying with the hospital sweatshirt she was given.

Thinking about the shot, and the lies, and the way Kara seemed cold and almost dismissive towards death. She holds her head, it’s so much to think about. She taps her fingers along the railing, sighing as the cold air hits her skin. Kara’s face flashes in her mind, the anger… the fear. She’s never seen Kara afraid, hell, she’s never really seen Kara that angry. And it unnerved her.

“Lena.”

She gasps, turning. Her heart races, “Who’s there?”

A figure steps into the light, hands up in fake surrender. She relaxes slightly when she sees it’s Kara, but she doesn’t allow herself to smile, still upset. “Kara.”

“You should be laying down.”

She shrugs, “Merely grazed me.”

“Grazes are no joke, you’re going to have one hell of a scar.”

“At least I’m still alive.” She sighs, “Guess I have you to thank for that.”

Kara’s head falls, “Look, Lena, I know you’re upset-”

“Upset!? Upset! Of course, I’m upset, Kara. ”

“I understand.”

“I don’t think you do,” she says, careful with her word choice and tone. “You lied to me.”

“I did what I had to do to put you at ease.”

She scoffs, “You clicked the release… It just- It doesn’t make sense.”

Kara sighs, “It’s an old negotiation trick, Lena. I learned it a long time ago.”

“Ah, yet another thing from your past.”

“Are we really going to have this conversation again?”

She walks over to Kara, taking her in. She’s still in her suit from earlier, though it’s missing the jacket. Her sleeves are rolled up, her shirt wrinkled. She looks tired, and for a moment Lena just wants to lay her down, make sure she’s fine. But then she’s angry again. “Yes, we are going to have this conversation. You keep avoiding my questions.”

“Lena-”

“What did you do in the military?”

“I served!”

“By doing what? Have you ever killed anyone, Kara?”

The blonde stutters over her words, “I- I mean, yes, but-”

“And where did you bring me when we first met?”

“I can’t tell you that.”

She rolls her eyes, “Of course you can’t. It’s all secrets with you.”

Kara crosses her arms defensively in front of her, straightening herself. “We’ve already talked about this.”

“No, we didn’t talk! I asked questions and you avoided most of them. You’re one hell of a bodyguard but you’re a horrible liar.” That’s not entirely true, Kara’s great at dodging questions with other questions, and the few times she has caught her lying were in emotional moments, she’s sure she’s wonderful at it.

“I’ve worked with a lot of ex-military, and none of them are like you.”

Kara’s eyes go wide for a moment before she settles back into a cold, emotionless face. “You’re high or something Lena, this isn’t you.”

She laughs, “Of course, I’m high, Kara! Don’t know if you remember since you clearly don’t care but you killed a man tonight!”

Kara’s hands drop down, “You don’t think I care?”

“You don’t act like it.”

“I was 19 years old, second-year serving. I was with my team, it was a recovery mission. We had made our way into this bunker, we split up, a bad decision looking back on it.” She pauses a moment, a faraway look in her eyes. “Um, I heard a loud yell and made my way towards it, I found a man with his gun pointed right at my closest friend's head. So I did what I had to do.”

“Did you really have to?”

“It was either watch my friend die, or kill a man who had already killed dozens of people before.”

She shakes her head, “I don’t get it.”

“Of course you don’t get it, Lena! You weren’t there. Those six years were the worst of my life! I relieve the moments every day, seeing my friends die, watching my own hands kill people! Relieving the time…” She stops herself, putting a hand over her mouth and turning away.

“Reliving the time what, Kara?”

She sighs, “Reliving the time I died! It’s always on repeat, over and over. Some days it plays differently, the way it didn’t actually happen, but my brain's twisted version of it. Other’s it’s the full thing.”

There’s a part in the back of her mind that regrets this. But she needs answers. “You mentioned you were shot... in the head specifically.”

Kara turns back around, “What about it?”

She closes the space between them, hands going to Kara’s forehead where her finger traces over a small scar. “This scar is way too small for that to be true, Kara.”

Kara stares down at her, and Lena feels her breath slow. “What are you talking about?”

“There’s something off about you… The day we first met, you tackled me before a gunshot even sounded. Whenever I tap my foot you seem to get agitated, your reflexes are faster than I can blink…” She sighs, “Who are you, Kara Danvers?”

Kara pulls away slightly, “I’m whoever you want me to be, Lena. Your friend who brings you food, or the person you hired to do whatever it takes to protect you..”

Lena stares at Kara, trying to get even a hint of anything behind the stone wall that’s been put up. “I’m going to regret this in the morning…”

“Regret what?”

Kara barely gets the words out before Lena completely closes the distance between them, their lips coming together. It’s soft and sweet and everything Lena had been imaging over these past few months. Kara’s hands fall to Lena’s lips, pulling her in a bit tighter and Lena doesn’t mind. They move over to the rather large bed her room comes with, and Kara slips off Lena’s shirt. Lena immediately takes to unbuttoning Kara’s, slipping it off.

She pulls away however when it falls to the floor, staring at the woman in front of her. Her abdomen is covered in scars, most of them small, a few larger ones. Her hands trace over a few before Kara pulls away from her.

“This was a bad idea.”

“Kara, wait-”

Her protests fall on deaf ears as Kara rebuttons her shirt, “No, no. As I said, you aren’t yourself. You’re on medication and you just had a near-death experience… just, no.”

She watches as Kara leaves, the door closing behind her. She falls back onto her bed, sighing, regretting everything.

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, wow, okay. So, does this count as another cliffhanger? Oops if so... This might seem a little fast but trust the process. As always, comments and kudos are appreciated. Also feel free to hit me up on tumblr.


	8. Chapter Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena does some digging.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Got this done faster than I expected, hope you all enjoy.

Kara hasn’t left the house in days. Not like she’s had any reason to. Lena’s taking a whole week off, the most she ever has. So Kara’s been at home, having one of the worst weeks of her life. She’s had bad weeks before, her tremor becomes stronger, she’s more tired and lethargic. But this one has been one of the worst since her first year back in the states.

She hasn’t been able to sleep at all. The nightmares have been too bad. The most she gets is maybe an hour before she wakes up, screaming and gasping for air. She’s up at 6 AM on Thursday, she didn’t even try to sleep. She pours herself some coffee and sighs, leaning against her counter as she drinks it.

A knock comes on her door and she looks over to it. She wasn’t expecting anyone. She walks over and peeks through the looking hole. She opens it, “Alex.”

“Kara.”

Her older sister allows herself inside, pushing past Kara. She closes the door behind Alex. “I didn’t know you were coming over.”

“Yeah, well, I’ve been calling.”

“Oh, my phone’s been off.” It’s a lie, she’s really just been ignoring everyone’s calls.

Alex looks around her house, sighing. “Kara, this place is a mess.”

Kara scoffs. There are merely a few dishes in the sink and some clothes on the floor. Sure, it’s messier than she would normally have it, but it’s not horrible. “You’re overexaggerating.”

“We’re worried about you.”

“I’m fine, Alex.” She puts on the most reassuring smile she can.

“Have you been taking your meds?”

She rolls her eyes, “I haven’t gotten around to getting a refill.”

“Kara! When did you run out?”

“Like… a month ago?”

Her sister groans, “Kara, the medication helps you!”

“I feel fine without it!”

Alex snatches her hand up, holding it in front of her face. Kara looks at it, at the way it’s shaking. She shrugs, pulling away. “So, I have a shaky hand! What’s the big deal?”

“Are you forgetting what happened last time you went off your meds?”

She runs a hand through her hair, “I don’t want to think about it.”

“You thought you were back on a mission and nearly killed mom.”

She clenches her fists. It was one over a year ago. She’d just been having a tough time, “That wasn’t my fault! It was Jeremiahs! He made me feel crazy for being on the meds, I didn’t mean to hurt anyone…”

All she remembered was feeling scared. Something shifted and she was no longer in her parents' house, cleaning up after dinner. She was in a field, being shot at. Her mother was no longer her mother, but an enemy, and she did what her brain told her to do. Luckily, Alex came before she could swing the knife she got from the drawer, but still...

Alex nods, “I know, I know, okay? I shouldn’t have brought it up… I’m just worried, Kara.”

“I just- Things have been crazy, okay?”

“With Lena?”

She hates the way her heart flutters at the name, “After what happened I went to go see her in the hospital, and…”

“And what?”

“She got mad, and I couldn’t calm her down. Then she went on this whole thing about how I lied, and how I didn’t care about the man I shot… She made me sound like a monster! And if I’m honest I felt like one.”

Alex frowns but doesn’t say anything allowing Kara to continue.

“And then she took a turn and started asking about when I was shot and said that my scar was too small for that. She told me I wasn’t like ex-military she’s seen before, that I was different.”

“She’s onto you,” Alex said, voice low and quiet.

“That’s not possible, I’ve been careful. No one’s figured it out and no one ever will.”

“What else happened?”

Kara sighs, “She kissed me.”

“She kissed you?!”

“And I kissed back.”

Alex gawks, “Don’t tell me you slept with your boss.”

“No! No, I didn’t sleep with her… I almost did, but I didn’t.”

“What happened?”

She shrugs, “She was on pain meds, she wasn’t herself. I pulled back.”

“Was that all it was?”

“Yeah, what else would it be?”

Alex carefully comes closer to her sister, lifting up the front of her shirt. “Or did you get freaked out by her seeing these?”

Kara doesn’t look down. A strange sense of shame filling her. She moves Alex’s hand away and pulls her shirt back down. It’s been 4 years, but she’s never truly gotten used to seeing herself as beautiful with the scars she now has. As a kid, she never got injured or hurt, therefore she never had any marks. But of course, that changed, and now she can barely look at herself in the mirror.

“Um, I just… I’m not ready for it.”

“Well, work’s going to be very awkward for you isn’t it?”

She chuckles softly, “Yeah, it definitely is.”

“Why don’t you come out with us tonight? Kelly, me, and Winn.

She sighs, “Sure… Guess I should probably get out of the house.”

Her sister smiles, “Great, so I’ll go get your refill later today, and pick you up tonight.”

* * *

Kara Danvers is not who she says she is. That’s one thing Lena is sure of. She’s got some kind of secret and Lena is set on figuring it out. She sighs as she comes up once again empty on her infinite search into Kara’s past. There’s no Instagram, Twitter, not even a Facebook. There are a few articles, mainly on her key to the city and medal of honor. There’s one from Midvale Review that talks about her being the star of Midvale High’s basketball team, but it’s from over ten years ago.

She taps her foot against the ground. She’s going stir crazy. All she’s been doing is sleeping and working, she’s losing it. Her eyes dart to her phone and it’s as if a lightbulb goes off in her mind, she reaches for it and immediately pulls up Winn’s contact, calling him.

It rings a few times before the man answers, “Hello?”

“Winn, hi, this is Lena.”

“Lena? Hi, wow, um, to what do I owe the pleasure of this call?”

She smiles at his kindness, “Well, I was just wondering if maybe you’d want to get lunch today? I know a great place.”

He hesitates for a moment, “Um, any particular reason why?”

“I’d just love to talk, I’ve been cooped up for a while.”

“Well then, I’d love to! Um, where should we meet?”

An hour later Lena gets to a small restaurant, walking inside. She’s seated almost immediately and is glad the place is practically empty. A little bit later, Winn walks in. She waves him over and he smiles as he sits down.

“I’m glad you could make it,” she says, flipping through the menu.

“I’m never one to turn down lunch, especially with you.” He puts a hand over his mouth, stuttering over the words that follow. “Not that like I think this is a date or that like I’m attracted to you! I mean, I am attracted to you, you’re very attractive but-”

She cuts him off with a small laugh, “Relax, Winn. It’s alright.”

“Right, right.”

They stay mainly silent until they order, but when neither of them have a menu to occupy themselves with, Lena goes on the prowl. “So, how long have you known Kara?”

“Since high school, I was kind of… nerdy. And she was this cool popular jock, she basically made sure I didn’t get shoved into lockers.”

She laughs, “That sounds like her.”

“Yeah, she’s always had a big heart. She likes helping people.”

She nods, “So, you were there when she went into the marines?”

He tilts his head slightly but nods, “Um, yeah, I was. Why?”

“I’m just wondering.” She taps her fingers against her leg, “Is Alex really Kara’s sister? They just… look so different.”

“Uh- I mean, Kara’s adopted so.”

Adopted. Well, good to know they have something in common. She hums, “What was Kara like in high school?”

He hesitates a moment, looking around in thought, before landing back on Lena. “She was the star of every team she was ever on. Basketball, soccer, swim. Junior year she tried out track but dropped it because of an… incident.”

She smiles, “Well, I’m not surprised.”

“Yeah. But she wasn’t like a dumb jock. She was super smart, managed to get quite a few scholarships. Both for her athletic and scholarly abilities. People loved her, it was common knowledge that if anyone was giving you trouble or you just wanted to talk to someone, Kara would be there.”

“She mentioned being into art history?”

He nods, smiling, “She wanted to be a teacher.”

“Why didn’t she become one?”

He sighs “Like I said, her dad was a military man. When Alex didn’t exactly go into it, he looked to Kara. It was his way of having a mini-me.”

Their food was brought out as he finished his sentence. She sighed and began eating. They both ate in silence for the most part, but Lena’s curiosity was still piqued. “So, did you go to Kara’s medal of honor ceremony?”

He nods, finishing the food in his mouth. “Yeah, me and her family.”

“No Nia? Brainy?”

“We didn’t know them yet.”

“I see.”

She sighs, tapping her fork on her plate. “There’s something… off about Kara.”

He pauses, drink pressed to his lips. Slowly he lowers it back down, “Um… how so?”

“She’s remarkable.”

He chuckles, confused. “And that’s an off thing?”

“She’s _too_ remarkable. She gave me a rather large bruise by barely squeezing me, she’s faster than I can blink… It’s strange.”

“I- Well-” He stutters over his words, before taking a long drink of his water. When he pulls the cup away it’s empty, save for the ice. “I don’t… I can’t say anything on this.”

She’s on the right track. “On what?”

He adjusts himself in his seat, sighing. “On Kara. I shouldn’t be talking about this with you.”

“We’re just talking about a mutual friend, Winn,” she gives him her best convincing smile. “Is something wrong with Kara?”

“No, no… Look, can I trust you?”

She nods, maybe more eagerly than she’d liked. He hums, “Okay.” He dips into his jacket pocket and pulls out a notepad and a pen, writing something down and tearing the paper. “Tonight, 9 pm, show up here. The password is Victorian.”

She takes the paper, looking at the address. She doesn’t ask about why she needs a password, just smiling to herself. “Thank you, Winn.”

“You can’t tell anyone I gave you that, okay? Especially Alex and Kara.”

“I promise.”

* * *

9 PM came both too fast and too quick for Lena’s liking. She spent about an hour trying to figure out what to wear, not exactly sure where she was even going nor what the dress code was. She landed on jeans and a black t-shirt, tucking it in. She arrived right on time, parking in the lot of a dark and dim building. She gets out of her car and goes to the only lit up door, she tries to open it to no avail.

A small slit in the door opens and she sees a pair of eyes looking at her. “Oh, um… Victorian.”

The slit closes and the door opens, allowing her inside. Immediately the smell of booze fills her nose, she’s definitely in a bar. There are quite a few people in there, but as Lena looks around they realize they aren’t normal people. They’re aliens. She tries to avoid staring but it’s a bit hard. 

She spots a larger man with gills on his face, he’s chatting with a woman who has stunning red hair. Then her eyes move to a woman with pretty brown curly hair, she looks normal. This woman notices her staring and walks over to her, smiling slyly.

“You don’t belong here.”

She laughs nervously, and as the woman stops only a few feet away from her, she notices her lack of pupils. “Um, what do you mean?”

The woman's eyes glow a pretty purple, “You are human.”

She swallows hard, “Yes. Is that an issue?”

She smirks, “No, no. Your kind just usually doesn’t come here alone. Especially not a Luthor.”

“How’d you know?”

“Well, besides the fact that I can read minds, your face has been all over the news recently.”

She sighs, trying to hide her nervousness. It’s not like aliens are a Luthor's biggest fan. “I’m going to get a drink.”

The woman nods, “Well if you need any company… the name’s Lilly.”

She walks away and towards the bar, leaning against it. A woman eventually comes to her, asking what she wants. She orders just water, not wanting to get drunk alone. The woman comes back with her glass quickly, smiling politely at her.

She stays at the bar for a while, just absently watching. The bar is nice, cozy. There are a few pool tables and dartboards, everyone’s having fun. Every now and then she’ll get a weird look from someone, but she just looks down, avoiding their eyes.

A familiar voice grabs her attention, she looks towards a booth to see Alex and someone she doesn't recognize walking towards a pool table. They’re pretty far off, clearly not paying attention to anyone but their group. She watches them a moment before her eyes go back to the booth they came from, seeing Kara. She tilts her head, confused as to why she would be here. She pushes down the strange feeling of butterflies in her stomach as she looks at the blonde, remembering what happened the last time they were together.

She watches as Kara groans dramatically and gets up, she walks over to where Alex and the woman are. They talk for a moment before Kara bends down, picking up one of the legs of the table with a single hand. Lena gawks for a moment, nearly dropping her glass. She looks away, mind racing. 

A hand falls on her shoulder and she gasps, turning. Winn stands there, fidgeting nervously. “Winn… is Kara…” She can’t even finish her sentence.

“Yes. But she can’t know I helped you find out.”

An alien. Kara Danvers is an alien. Holy... She downs her water, now wishing she got something stronger. She taps her fingers against her now empty glass, watching Kara walk back. She doesn’t seem to notice Lena at all, simply walking back to the booth and talking with whoever was there.

“Lena, are you okay?”

She nods, “Yes. I’m glad I know.”

“You aren’t going to… do anything, right?”

She scoffs at him, “I’m not my brother, Winn.”

“Right, I know that.”

“I'm going to go. Thanks again, Winn.”

He gives her a tight-lipped smile, walking away. She sighed and turned her back, facing the bar once more. The bartender came around again, asking if she wanted something else. She shook her head, and paid, leaving. She sat in her car for a while, just thinking.

Winn said she can’t know he helped her, but he didn’t say she couldn’t figure out a way to find out on her own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo, the moment you've all wanted (well, most of you at least). It's a step in the right direction for their relationship at least.  
> As always comments and kudos are appreciated, let me know what you think.
> 
> tumblr: manwithaminivan


	9. Chapter Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Actions and Consequences, pt. 1 (kind of)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, y'all ripped me a new one on the last chapter. I know what Winn did was horrible but you gotta trust the process! I promise that Winn and Lena will learn their lesson, starting in this chapter. Anyway, have fun reading.

It’d been a few days since Winn told her and Lena felt guilty.

Guilt over knowing Kara’s secret, and guilt over kind of manipulating Winn into giving her the information. Today was her first day back in the office, which meant it was her first time seeing Kara since the hospital. She got to the office early, around 6. Most get there at 8, but knowing Kara she’d arrive at 7:30. 

She takes the time to prepare herself, taking deep breaths and making sure when Kara does show she won’t get butterflies. She adjusts her clothes and wishes that she hadn’t worn a pencil skirt today. The elevator dings and she can’t help but look over there, watching as Kara steps out, taking a moment to adjust her cuffs.

Her breath hitches when they make eye contact for what couldn’t have been more than a second, but for Lena, it felt like forever. She looks back to her desk, still eyeing Kara out of the corner of her eye. The blonde moves to her normal position outside Lena’s office, standing at attention. She always thought it must be boring as ever, just standing there, having to make sure nothing's off. Though did being an alien give Kara some advantage?

She knew she at least had super strength and speed. That’s for sure. She wonders for a moment if superhearing is out of the equation, based on all the times Kara seemed to pick up on the smallest of sounds. She shakes her head, she needs to focus on work. She can’t- no matter how much she wants to- she can’t confront Kara about this. Because it’s not even for her to know, let alone make Kara feel bad about it. And though when she first found out, all she wanted to do was tell Kara she knew, a few deep breaths and a day of rethinking had changed her mind.

The day goes on pretty normally, she didn’t have many meetings. She spent most of the day in her office or in the lab, overseeing some new tests for one of her upcoming projects. It’s around 5 when her phone dings, she looks over to it to see a notification from her security cameras. She clicked on it and it pulled up the feed from the front entrance.

She scoffed when Max Lord’s face appeared, staring up at the camera. Kara must have told Winn to program the cameras to tell Lena when he shows up. She taps her fingers, wondering what he even wants. Then he holds up a small locked box with Lord Technologies logo on it, and she’s interested. She pressed a button and he walks in.

It’s a few minutes before the elevator dings and his smug face comes out. Kara immediately stiffens, eyeing Max before turning into Lena’s office.

“Lord is here.”

She nods stiffly, “Yes, I know.”

“You let him in?”

She sees him staring at the two in her office, “Yes, yes I did. Is that an issue?”

“It’s just the last time you two had a conversation, it ended not too well.”

Lena remembers the time vividly. The fear she felt. But then she’s filled with slight anger, remembering that was the time Kara lied to her about the gun. “I think I can handle myself. You can just wait out there.”

Hurt flashes across Kara’s face for a moment, but she nods. “Alright.” She leaves the office and goes back to her normal post. Max smiles at Kara in passing when Lena calls him in. He enters her office and sets the box down on her desk.

“Max, what is this?”

He shrugs, “Oh, just the official Lord Technologies alien detection device. Completely free of bugs, the highest version of it. And you are the first to see it.”

She rolls her eyes, “I thought I made my distaste for your outing aliens device clear.”

The sentence is definitely hypocritical. She technically just let a guy out an alien to her. There’s no backing out of that, but still, Max has bad intentions.

“Ah, Lena. Come on.”

“No! I have spent years trying to rid Lex from me and this company, but here you are showing up with something that could be of his own design?”

Lex tenses, “You’re making me sound like a monster. When the real monsters are out there hiding among us!”

“Yeah, they’re hiding because of people like you, Max!”

He scoffs, going for the box. He pulls out a small key from his pocket and unlocks it, bringing out the device. It’s a bit different in design from before but clearly serves the same purpose. He sticks his thumb on it and after a moment it beeps and turns green. Then grabs her wrist, forcing it onto the pad, the same thing happening.

“Exactly.  _ People  _ like me. _ People  _ like us.”

She sighs, “What’s your point, Max?”

“Come to my event tonight, these are going to be outside. Guests will have to scan their thumb on it before entering. Any aliens will be… dealt with.”

She shudders at his insinuation. “I don’t want any part of this.”

“You don’t have a choice, Lena.”

“Says who?”

“Says one of my powerful friends.”

“Is that a threat?”

He shrugs, “If you want it to be.”

She taps her fingers against her desk, “Fine. What time?”

“8 PM. It’s business casual, so no need to change.” He smiles wickedly, “Don’t be late, dear.”

With that he leaves, Lena sighs and drops her head in her hands. This wasn’t great. She turns to see Kara eyeing Max as he leaves, before dropping back and into her office. “What did he want?”

She’s sure Kara already knows, most likely having listened in to the conversation. “He invited me to an event. Where his new tech will be used.”

“New tech? As in…”

Kara doesn’t finish her sentence but Lena nods, “Yes.”

“Um, okay. So, I’ll just stay here and leave with you?”

“Perfect.”

8 PM came rather quick. Lena finished up her things, cleaning up her desk before she and Kara made their way down to meet her driver. Kara got in after her, sitting in the farthest spot away from Lena she could, she didn’t necessarily blame her. She could see Kara texting on the phone, clearly nervous. And Lena was nervous too, if this goes as Lena thinks it will, people are going to know Kara’s an alien. And no matter how upset she is about what happened, she doesn’t want anyone else to find out.

Especially Max.

His threat lingers in her mind. She’s confused about what he meant by one of his powerful friends, but she’s sure if she went to the part of her mind she needs to, she could figure it out. But she doesn’t want to think that way, she was just nearly killed, she needed to be positive.

“Are we going to talk about what happened?” Kara’s voice cut through the silence of the car. 

“Do you want to?”

“I feel like we should…”

“Right.” She took a breath, “I think we were both not ourselves. We both had a rough night, and we were arguing… I just got caught up in the moment.”

Kara nods, “Yeah… It was just a mistake.”

She’s not sure why her heart breaks slightly with the word mistake. That’s what it was, right? Just a simple slip-up. “Exactly.”

Kara tapped her foot, “So, Winn said you guys had lunch?”

She tenses, “Yes, we did. Why?”

“Nothing, just… it was nice of you to treat him to lunch.”

“It’s the least I could do after he installed such good security.”

Kara hums in agreement, her eyes scanning Lena’s She seems to be analyzing something, analyzing her. Lena shifts slightly but Kara stays locked on for another minute, before looking back down at her phone. Lena exhales slowly and goes back to thinking about what she can do about making it so Kara isn’t detected.

The car comes to a stop and they both get out, Kara holding the door for Lena. They step onto a small pathway, where there are three lines- one for the press, one for general guests, then there’s a line that says VIP. She sees Max wave at her and point to the VIP line, Lena makes a motion for Kara to follow before they fall into the very short line.

Lena’s mind is still racing. Maybe she could go twice, pass the second one off as Kara’s. Or maybe she could make a scene, the press are always into that. She’s jolted when they move up in line. She looks up to Kara who seems to be much calmer than in the car. Her hands rest in her pockets and a nonchalant look plays on her face.

Lena wonders how she’s so calm. She’s the one who has the chance of being outed. The line moves again, they’re one away now. The people in front of them pass through easily and Max welcomes them. Finally, it’s their turn.

Max smiles, “Lena, blondie. Welcome. If you’ll go ahead and place your thumbs on the device. Staring with you Lena.”

She slowly sticks her thumb on the pad, waiting a moment before as it did before, turns green, and beeps. He smiles wide, “Well, we already knew that, yes?”

He turns towards Kara, “Your turn.”

Kara nods and sighs, “Right. So, I just stick my thumb on it?”

“Yes, go ahead.”

Her thumb goes to the pad and it’s as if things move in slow motion for Lena. She watches as Kara’s thumb lands, and the machine whirrs. She stares at it, it seems to take an abnormal amount of time. Her breath hitches when it beeps and turns… green?

Max seems confused, as is Lena. Kara smiles, pulling her thumb away. “Expect something different?”

He shakes his head, “No… no, of course not.”

“Great, then we’re allowed in, right?” 

He nods, moving to allow them inside. When they’re a ways away from the entrance Lena pulls Kara aside, grabbing her hand. Kara doesn’t argue, simply allowing Lena to inspect her fingers. “Is something wrong, Lena?”

“I just… I thought-”

Kara quirks her head, “Thought what?”

Maybe Winn lied, maybe the secret was something else. Maybe she didn’t see what she thought she saw. No, no. She’s certain she saw it right, Kara picked up a pool table with one hand. Eventually, she drops Kara’s arm. “Nothing, I suppose I’m just paranoid Max did something.”

Kara adjusts her sleeve, “Relax, Lena. Enjoy your night, hm?”

She nods hesitantly, “Yes. Right.”

They both turn and make their way into the event. Apparently, it’s a celebration for Max’s new device finally being put to use. It’s good for the first few minutes, then everyone’s attention is grabbed by the screams and pleads of a woman's voice. Lena turns to the doors, seeing two security guards dragging away a woman. She notes the red glowing device and looks up to Kara who seems indifferent.

Kara notices her and sighs, taking the ring off her finger. “I can tell you’re still worried… so if anything bad should happen,” Kara slipped the ring onto Lena’s finger. “Spin the ring all the way clockwise.”

She can’t seem to form any words, so she nods aimlessly. “Okay.” 

But as the woman’s pleads continued she couldn't stand still so she marches over to Max, who has the smuggest look on his face. She hits his shoulder, “What are you doing Maxwell?”

He scoffs, “There’s no law that says I have to have their kind in here. At least not yet.”

“You disgust me.”

“You know, Lena, I thought you were better than this.” He sighs. “I thought you were a better Luthor.”

She nearly throws up at the words, “How dare you.”

“Lena, the world has an order.” The guards from before have now restrained the woman and are looking at Max, he nods, and they proceed to take the woman outside. “Humans and aliens... We must make sure that order is known or they will use their powers against us.”

“There have been very few alien attacks and those that have happened were immediately stopped by Superman.”

“Superman is part of the problem, Lena.”

She shakes her head, “You’re the problem, Max. I’ll figure out a way to stop you.”

He laughs, getting close to her face. “How are you going to do that? You can’t even keep track of your bodyguard.”

She raises a brow, turning. Kara’s no longer there. She looks around, heart rate picking up. “What did you do?”

“You should really be more careful of which bars you go into. A lot of aliens aren’t fans of Luthor’s. Some are willing to give up what they see just for a promise of money and safety.”

She tries to speak but he cuts her off.

“I’m sure she went peacefully, wouldn’t want to make a scene… Ya know, most victims with PTSD have a trigger… that trigger gets pulled and who knows how they could respond.” He chuckles, “I’d hate for her to do something violent and get arrested.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I'm in Texas and was without power for over 24 hours. The only way I have power now is because I've left my house and am at my grandparent's. So, with that said please be patient with new updates, I'm not sure how long these blackouts are gonna last. I'm hoping they're over soon. For anyone else in Texas: please stay safe!
> 
> As always comments and kudos are appreciated (especially comments, love hearing what you guys think).
> 
> tumblr: manwithaminivan


	10. Chapter Ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Actions and Consequences (pt. 2 kind of)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, I had access to power for about 4 hours! Typing this as I hope it doesn't go out all of a sudden. Enjoy! (y’all gonna hate me for this chapter)

Lena stared Max down. What was he doing? She turned from him and began to walk through the crowd, calling for Kara like a stray dog. She stopped when she got some weird stares. She fell into a corner of the room, still looking around. She sighs, and looks down at her hand, seeing the ring Kara slipped on it early. 

_If anything bad should happen, spin the ring all the way clockwise._

Does this count as something bad happening? Kara’s missing. Max clearly has some evil plan. She takes a breath, scanning the ring. It seems basic, nothing too interesting about it. There’s a small engraving on it, it’s worn but if Lena squints she swears it’s the superman logo. She looks around one last time as if willing Kara to just appear. It’s to no avail, however. She sighs, mumbling words of affirmation to herself before turning the ring. 

She expects some loud ring, maybe even an explosion. But nothing changes, there’s only a small click. She scoffs, maybe it was just a thing Kara gave her to make her feel better. Just like the ‘unloaded’ gun. Max eyes her, but she quickly turns away, not wanting to arouse suspicion. She steps into the bathroom and sighs, disappointed the ring didn’t do anything.

However, as the door closes behind her, the worn logo on the ring lights up. She yelps and locks the door, hoping no one else is in there. She moves further into the room, staring at the ring. A beam of light shoots out and a hologram-like figure appears.

“Kara?”

The oldest Danvers sister stands there, well, she doesn’t stand there, a hologram of her does. She’s holding a tablet and seems distracted by what's on it. Lena stares in awe, she’s been working on holograms with her team for a while but no one seems able to crack it. She’s broken from her staring by Alex.

“You’re not Kara.”

She shakes her head, “She gave me the ring.”

Alex scoffs, and Lena can feel the judgment coming off her even if she isn’t in the room. “What’d you do?”

“I didn’t do anything! She said if something goes wrong, I should spin it clockwise.”

“So, something went wrong…”

She nods, “Kara’s missing.”

Alex sets the tablet down and it disappears from view, “For how long?”

“I don’t know… like 10 minutes?”

“And she’s not just in the bathroom? Maybe getting a drink?”

Lena shakes her head, “No, no. I don’t think so. Max he… Well, he kind of threatened her? In a way?”

“You need to be more confident in your answers. What did Max say?”

“He said stuff like: ‘you can’t keep track of your bodyguard’ and ‘I’m sure she went peacefully’.”

Alex nods, “Alright. Stay there, we’re on our way.”

“Who’s we?”

“To you, we’re the FBI.”

The hologram shuts off and the glow of the ring dies down. She sighs, running a hand through her hair. Kara would be fine. She’s clearly an alien, Max somehow knows that… Though how the hell did she get past the device. She taps her fingers along the sink, finding comfort in the cool counter.

So, Kara was gone. Meaning she was in danger, but also meaning Lena was in danger. Max obviously had some kind of plan, whether it’s to harm her or Kara she isn’t exactly sure of yet. There’s a loud bang on the door and she jolts, moving to it. She unlocks it quickly and leaves before anyone could really get a good look at who she was.

She walks back out into the main part of the building, beginning to talk with different groups of people. It’s quite slow, and the only thing people want to talk about with her is the attempts on her life. She’s not a fan of it, so she moves from those conversations, eventually falling in with a group that doesn’t really talk with her except for every now and then, just how she likes it.

Max arguing with someone grabs her attention. She looks over to see Alex and Max very close in proximity, Alex using one of her hands to motion a team inside. She watches as Max scoffs, falling away.

“Alright! We’re FBI, everyone, out!” Alex yells and she’s heard pretty well over the bustle of everything.

A few agents help people out but Lena finds her way over to Alex. “What are you going to do?”

“Find my sister, what else?”

Lena nods, watching as the room clears.

“You should get out there, Lena.”

* * *

Kara was never a fan of helicopters. Bad experiences from the past kind of ruined them for her. Yet here she was, sitting with her hands cuffed in bonds that she could not break. She’s sure if she tried hard enough she could muster some strength no matter the kryptonite in the cuffs, but the men who took her threatened Lena and she’s not ready to take that chance.

She looks down below, sighing as they fly out of the city. The man next to her grabs her arm and makes her sit up, looking straightforward. She rolls her eyes. “Would you relax?”

“My job is to take you in alive, but there’s no rule saying I can’t hurt you. So I suggest, you stay still and shut up.”

She scoffs, “I don’t think you can hurt me.”

He purses his lips in thought before reaching below the seat. The knife he pulls out is small, but it glows green. She sucks in a breath. It comes close to her face, and she can feel it affect her. It drags along her cheek, making her wince away. He smiles devilishly, putting the knife back. She feels the blood dribble down her cheek but ignores it, she’s felt worse.

They land a few minutes later and Kara’s hauled out. They go down a long set of stairs before they end up in what looks like an empty warehouse. She’s lead to what looks like an upright hospital bed and is strapped to it, hands now free from the cuffs but strapped to the sides. 

“Guys, we don’t have to do this, alright? People will be coming for me soon enough.”

She receives no response as loud and confident footsteps come near them. She watches as a figure appears from the shadows, snapping once. Immediately the men who brought her in leave and a chill goes down her spine as the man comes fully into the light.

“Lex Luthor.”

“Kara Zor-El… we finally meet.”

She eyes the man up and down. She’s heard of him before of course, his and her cousins' feud was famous. Even though she was across the world, she’d heard all about it. Lex was smart, cunning, though not in the way Lena was. He chose to use his brain for evil, yet Lena chose to use it for good. She supposes that’s one of the main reasons she was fine with working with the younger Luthor, the fact that she was so clearly not like her brother.

Lex moves closer to her, grabbing her face. “I’ll never cease to be amazed by how… human you all look.”

“You all?” Her words come out muffled as he holds her face.

“You Kryptonians!” He lets go, throwing her face slightly as he does. 

She chuckles to hide her nervousness, “How’d you know?”

“When I was in prison, I still maintained a lot of hold on the outside. People who updated me on everything I was missing… One of those included the mysterious blonde woman flying in the sky.”

She internally hits herself. It was a training day and she got distracted and flew a bit too far. They were able to spin off some lie about rockets, making sure any good footage was deleted off the internet. She sighs, “Not my finest moment.”

“I did some more research after hearing this. Looked into places Superman had been seen besides Metropolis… found a few reports from out in Midvale. Then I found an article on a mysterious crash, then all of a sudden a 13-year-old girl was adopted by the Danvers.” He walks around in front of her.

“So you’ve figured it out… Would you like a round of applause?”

He scoffs, “You’re just like him.”

“How so?”

“The cockiness. Though don’t worry… I’ll humble you a bit.”

* * *

It was hours. She waited outside that stupid building for hours. Everyone else had left, and she was still there. Still waiting. She kicks off the car she was leaning on when Alex comes out once more, shaking her head when she saw Lena’s expectant look.

She sighs as Alex comes closer, “Nothing?”

“We’ve scanned every room, every nook… She’s not here.”

“Well, where is she?”

Alex shrugs, “We’ll have to ask Max.”

The agent turns and starts making her way towards a large black vehicle with a logo she recognizes from the building she was brought to when she first met Kara and Winn’s laptop. She follows behind Alex, watching as she throws open the back doors. They both step inside to where Max sits, hands cuffed.

“Lord, where is she?”

He smiles, feigning innocence. “Where’s who?”

She rolls her eyes, “Kara. Where’s Kara, Max? Don’t be an idiot.”

He shakes his head, letting out a long dramatic sigh. “Look, it’s not that I wanted to do it. He just made some good points.”

Alex looks to Lena who shrugs, “Who’s he?”

“Who do you think?”

Lena scans his face, “You’re kidding.”

Alex raises a brow, “What?”

She steps into Max’s face, grabbing his shirt. “You dick! You’re working with my brother?” She pulls him forward then back, relishing in the way his head hits the wall of the vehicle. 

He groans, “Are you going to let her do this to me?!”

Alex shrugs, “The girl you helped kidnap’s my sister… Consider me blind.”

Lena hits him against the wall again, “Where is she?”

“I-”

She doesn’t let him finish her sentence, banging his head a bit more directly against the wall. “Where. Is. She?”

He sighs, “He said he sent a helicopter, that it would take her to a warehouse outside the city.”

Lena looks to Alex who appears to be thinking. “There’s only so many warehouses that he could take her to without the helicopter ride being forever… I’ll get a team on it.” Alex pushes past her and out of the vehicle, leaving Lena alone with Max.

She sighs, kneeling slightly. “If _anything_ happens to her, Max, I swear I will kill you.”

He smiles, dazed from the repeated bangs of his head, “Your brother will kill me before you can even raise a finger.”

* * *

15 minutes later Alex got off the phone. She came over to her, “Alright, an unnamed person rented out a warehouse a little way out of the city, it’s the only one she could be at.”

She nods, “I”m coming with you.”

Alex immediately shakes her head, “No way. You’re a civilian, I’m not putting you in danger.”

“I know my brother better than anyone, if you send a team in… he will kill Kara. But if you send me in…”

Alex’s eyes are filled with disapproval, “Lena, if something happens to you, Kara will never forgive me.”

Lena tries to ignore the way her heart flutters at the insinuation Kara cares that much about her. “I’m not taking no for an answer.”

The older Danvers sighs, nodding begrudgingly. “Alright.”

They drove to the warehouse, Alex said she didn’t want to bring attention. It was a team of a few black SUVs, Alex said each one contained a few agents. When they arrived Lena could feel her heart in her throat. She tried her best to shove it back down into her chest but it came to no avail. She sighed, moving her way to the front of their vehicle.

As Alex briefed her she watched the sets of agents set up at different posts. She snaps back to reality when Alex asks her to unbutton her shirt.

She stutters, “What?”

“You need a bulletproof vest. I don’t care if you think Lex won't do anything, I don’t want to risk it.”

She nods, agreeing. Though she knew most of Lex’s patterns he did tend to be unpredictable. Slowly she unbuttons her shirt and slips on the vest, buttoning her shirt back up over it. Alex sighs, “Are you sure?”

She looks over to the large warehouse, the huge doors feeling very threatening. “Yes. Yes, she’s saved me so many times it’s only fair I return the favor.”

“Alright. We’ll have a team help you with the door, keep the comms on. If we hear anything go wrong, we’ll send someone in.”

Lena smiles, “Thanks, Alex.”

“Go get Kara back.”

She turns and starts the walk towards the garage-like door. One agent pulls out a tool, leaning down to break the lock. He snaps it easily and lifts it enough for Lena to bend under. She suppresses a yelp when it slams behind her.

The room is entirely dark. She doesn’t move for a moment, trying to let her eyes adjust to the darkness. When she can see at least a little bit in front of her she steps, trying to stay quiet. A few steps in and all of a sudden what feels like every light in the world comes on. She shuts her eyes against the influx of light, hissing slightly.

Slowly she opens them again, blinking a few times. In the middle of the room stands a figure, she can’t see who it is yet so she approaches carefully. When she’s only a few feet away she sees it’s Kara, she’s tense, eyes glossy.

“Kara?”

“Yes?”

“Are you okay?”

The woman smiles, but it’s tight-lipped and forced, but she's clearly trying to keep Lena calm. “Lena, I need you to not take another step.”

She freezes, “What’s wrong?”

“I just… I don’t want you to see me like this.”

Lena notices green veins glow and disappear on Kara’s face and arms. She’s missing her suit jacket, and her shirt is rustled, nothing like Lena’s ever seen her before. “He’s using kryptonite on you.”

Kara creases her brows together, confused. “Who told you about that stuff?”

Footsteps cut off Lena’s response. Both of them look over to see Lex and someone Lena never expected to see.

“Winn…” Kara’s voice is questioning, as though she can’t believe what she sees.

“Kara, look-”

Lex cuts him off, “Your friend... Or should I say our friend has been very helpful. When I got out, he was the first one I went to see.”

Kara shakes her head, “No… No, you’re lying! You’re forcing him somehow!”

Lena thinks it over. It would make sense. Winn is the perfect source. He clearly works with Alex, has known Kara her whole life… He told her about Kara being an alien. Maybe it was all a setup, a way to get events to fall into place.

“No one’s forcing me! All my life I watched you excel at everything because you’re an alien! Meanwhile, I was stuck behind, treated like dirt because I wasn’t strong or great looking…” He sighs, “I couldn’t take it anymore!”

“I’m going to give you a choice, Lena,” Lex says, “You choose correctly, you get to see me fix the world. You choose incorrectly, then you’ll both be dead.”

She wonders for a moment why Alex hasn’t come in at all. Maybe Lex was smart and blocked the comms. She sighs, “What’s the choice?”

Lex reaches into his waistband and pulls out a gun, walking over, and sticks it in Lena’s hand. “Shoot Kara or shoot me.”

She laughs, “That’s an obvious choice.”

Too obvious.

“Oh, well, if you shoot me then this whole place will blow up. See there’s a bomb somewhere that only I know how to stop. So killing me would kill us all!” He laughs wickedly, “Don’t think you’d want that.”

She stares at Kara who’s staring back at her. She sees fear once more in Kara’s face, but it’s yet again not fear for herself. But fear for Lena. And all she wants to do is tell her to stop worrying about her and think about herself for a moment. 

“Oh! And tick tock, because the bomb goes off in 2 minutes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, intense? Haha, as always comments and kudos are appreciated! I might not be able to respond, but I'll try my hardest when I have access to power! 
> 
> tumblr: manwithaminivan


	11. Chapter Eleven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Choice is made.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so get through this chapter then read the notes at the end. Have fun!

She stares at the gun in her hands. She had two minutes, that was enough time to shoot Lex and run, right? She looks up at Kara who looks like she can barely stand. Her eyes seem to scan Lena’s face, her mind churning with ideas. Lena can’t move, she’s frozen and it’s stupid because she should just shoot Lex and get it over with. But then there’s Winn. She wonders if Lex equipped him with a gun, so if Lena chose ‘incorrectly’, he could just shoot her then Kara. And then there’s the bomb, who knows how big the explosion would be, there’s not enough information to make a plan.

She checks to see how many bullets are in the gun, she sighs when there’s only one. Lex’s smirk at her obvious frown.

“Lena.”

Her head shoots up and she locks eyes with Kara.

“Lena, shoot me.”

“What, no!”

Kara shakes her head, “Shoot me, right now.”

“I’m not going to shoot you, Kara!”

“Lena, there’s like a minute left, I need you to shoot me. Okay?”

She scoffs. This is outlandish. Why would she ever shoot Kara when Lex is right there? Ripe for the killing. She tightens her grip on the gun, turning to face Lex. He smiles at her and she looks away.

“Lena! Shoot me!” Kara’s voice picks up in intensity and she jolts slightly.

She shakes her head fervently, “I can’t!”

“Lena, if you’ve ever cared about me you’ll shoot me right now.”

She can’t help the laugh that leaves her lips. If she cared about Kara she’d shoot her? How in the world does that work! Time is going both far too fast and far too slow. 

“Do you trust me?”

The question shocks her. Though this whole night had been full of twists. She inhales sharply. Did she trust Kara? The woman’s whole job was to protect her, which involved an amount of trust. But then there were the lies and the secrets… But still, no matter how upset Lena seemed to be, Kara was there for her.

“Yes… Yes, I trust you.”

“Then shoot me!”

She barely registers aiming, let alone pulling the trigger. But when Kara’s body hits the ground, she sobs. She drops the gun down, rushing to Kara’s side. There’s blood pooling around them, and it stains Kara’s white shirt. The blonde coughs, heaving breaths racking her body like sobs rack Lenas.

She cradles Kara’s head, setting it in her lap as she softly strokes the blonde’s hair. “You’ve been through so much… You didn’t deserve any of it.” Her voice is barely a whisper, she’s sure Lex and Winn can’t even hear her.

Kara smiles softly, eyes unfocused.

“I’m so sorry.”

Kara shakes her head, “Don’t be.”

“Darling, this is all my fault.”

Her breaths are unsteady and her voice cracks slightly as she speaks, “I told you to trust me, so trust me. Don’t stress, alright?”

Lena scoffs, “Can you just worry about yourself for one second, Kara!”

Kara brings a hand up, cupping Lena’s face. “Shh. I stopped worrying about myself when I was shot in the head and came back to life… You really think you’re gonna be the one to do me in?”

“What?”

Her hand falls down and she coughs, taking a shaky breath, “Trust me to always come back. I’ll be with you until the very end.”

Kara’s body falls limp and Lena thinks this is the first time she’s ever seen her completely free of any stress or tension. She’s relaxed… peaceful almost. She moves her body off of her own, wiping some tears from her face. A hand falls on her shoulder and she stands immediately, whipping around. Winn stands there, a frown on his face.

“You don’t get to look sad.”

He sighs, “I wanted to back out… A long time ago. But, I just couldn’t. I didn’t think it would go this far.”

She slaps him, and in the back, she can hear Lex’s amused chuckle. “Kara was your friend, and you just let him do this.”

He sighs and steps away, rubbing at his cheek. Lex hums and walks over to her, “I didn’t think you had it in you, sister. You two had a very inspiring conversation.”

She doesn’t answer him.

“Fine. Well, congrats on choosing correctly. While you comforted your dying friend, I disarmed the bomb.” 

She nods.

“Listen, I know killing your first person can be difficult but I promise it’ll all be worth it once I show you my device.”

He begins walking and Winn falls in behind him. Before she does she looks to Kara, staring at her lifeless body. She lets out a shaky breath, scanning her over. She lands on Kara’s hand, and if she stares hard enough she swears she sees it shaking slightly, but she’s sure that’s her brain begging for her to come back.

Lex calls for her and she sighs, turning and following the pair up some stairs. They turn up on the roof, a helipad sitting in the middle. 

“Don’t go to the edge. Don’t want your friends out there to see you.”

She follows his instructions, watching as Lex snaps and says something to Winn. He quickly digs into his pocket and pulls out a small disk like figure, handing it over to Lex. Lex sighs happily and looks at Lena.

“It’s hard to believe but this little device will kill every alien in the United States.”

She swallows hard, “How?”

“It’s called the Medusa Virus. Funnily enough, it was created by a Kryptonian, the only good thing they’ve ever done… I press this button here, and this virus will be dispersed through the air all over the US. A perk of the satellites I set up when still in charge of L-Corp.”

He did it. He finally did it. Lex Luthor finally found a way to do what he had been dreaming of since Superman first showed. She stared at the device, “Please, Lex.”

“Lena. We are way past please. Now,” he hands the device over to her, “do it.”

She shakes her head, refusing to take it. “No.”

“Come on, it’ll be a good brother-sister moment!”

“You can’t make me!”

He pulls a knife and sits it on Winn’s throat. The man freezes, clearly, he didn’t consent to this part of the plan. “You may not like him but I know you, Lena. You’d never let me kill someone.”

She sighs, seeing the scared look on Winn’s face. Slowly she takes the device, staring at the button on it. Her finger hovers over it and her heart beats faster. She takes a breath, maybe this was her fate. She was a Luthor, this was just everything coming full circle. She puts her finger on the button and-

A loud bang.

She jumps and drops the device, hand going over her mouth as she sees Lex dead on the ground. She looks to where the shots came from. Right in the doorway is Kara, shirt still stained. Her mouth drops open, looking between her brother and the woman who leans in the doorframe. But soon enough she’s running, falling into strong arms. 

“I thought I’d lost you.”

Kara smiles, “I told you to trust me.”

She doesn’t say anything. She just presses her lips against Kara’s. It doesn’t last for any more than a second as Kara pulls away and groans. “Yeah, no, can we do this later? You did actually shoot me.”

* * *

After a lot of arguing Alex gave in and let Lena stay with Kara. She watched out the ambulance window as Winn was put into a car, hands cuffed and Lex was put into a body bag. Lena didn’t leave Kara’s side once the entire time, and she finally learned that Alex isn’t FBI, but DEO- Department of Extranormal Operations.

Lena twirls her hair as she stares down at Kara. The blonde was under some very strong sun lamps, breathing steadily. Her vitals were normal and she seemed okay, Alex had assured Lena she’d be fine but still, her nerves got the better of her.

The door to the medbay opened and Lena looked to it, seeing Alex come in with a clipboard. “I need you to sign some stuff.”

“What stuff?”

“NDA’s,”

She shakes her head goodnaturedly, “I’m not going to tell anyone, Alex.”

The redhead’s hand drops down, “Yeah, right… Sorry, it’s just with Winn, I’m nervous about more people knowing.”

“I understand… can’t we just come to a spoken agreement? If I say anything, I hereby give you permission to off me.”

Alex chuckles, “Deal. Um, I have to go do some paperwork. Will you stay with her?”

She nods, “Of course.”

She’s not sure how long she sat there, just watching Kara. But the sun was coming up when Kara stirred, her eyes opening. She immediately stood, going to the woman’s side. Kara groaned, looking around. She stopped and relaxed when she landed on Lena, smiling softly.

“Hey, you.”

Lena smiles, “Hey.”

“I can’t believe you shot me.”

She frowns. “Kara, I’m so sorry.”

Kara shakes her head, “No, no. It’s fine. I mean, I did tell you to do it.”

“How’d you live? You weren’t breathing when we left.”

She sighs, “Well, I can’t give up all my secrets can I?”

Lena reaches down and takes Kara’s hand, squeezing it gently. “You gave me one hell of a scare, Danvers.”

“Payback for going behind my back to figure out I was an alien.”

She purses her lips, “Right… Sorry about that.”

“Hm, I think I need a better apology than that.” A teasing smile plays on Kara’s lips.

Lena tilts her head, “Oh? What might that be?”

Kara hums, “Well, earlier I didn’t get much of a chance to enjoy that kiss. Seeing as I was bleeding and all.” She begins to sit up, much to Lena’s disapproval, but she seems well enough.

She sighs, “Well, I guess I could give you another one.”

Kara smiles, sitting fully up on the table now. Lena closes the distance between them, cupping Kara’s face in her hands. Kara’s arms wrap around Lena securely, and Lena’s never felt safer. The kiss is fierce, almost desperate. As though they are afraid they’d lose each other again. Lena pulled away but keeps their foreheads pressed together.

“If we’re going to do this thing, no more secrets.”

Kara nods, “I’m sure you’d figure out if I had any.”

It makes Lena chuckle softly and she pulls back a bit more, Kara’s arms still stay wrapped around her. “What happened to the cut that was on your cheek?”

Kara thinks for a moment, “Oh. We got me under sun lamps fast enough, won't scar over.”

She nods, “Good. Can’t have anything else ruining your perfect face.”

Kara laughs, “I’ll make sure it never happens again… So does this mean we’re a couple now?”

Lena sighs, “Yeah, yeah, but it’s gonna be a lot of work. We’ve both got some baggage.”

Kara nods, “Me more than you.”

She chuckles.

“But if it means spending the rest of my life with you, I’d do anything.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay! So, I have like two other versions of this chapter with different endings. If you aren't a fan of this ending or wanna see how the other choice(s) would have gone, drop a comment and let me know. I'll post it as another chapter to this work but label it an alternate ending. But this is it, I suppose. I hope you enjoyed! I don't know if I really ended this as well as I could have but I really enjoyed writing it and I loved interacting with you guys!
> 
> Thank you for the endless support, you're words mean so much to me. If you want some fun facts about this series or have questions about what comes after, feel free to send an ask to my tumblr, I'd love to talk more about this version of Kara and Lena.
> 
> As always, comments and kudos are appreciated.
> 
> Thank you.


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